


A Change of Season

by frantic65



Category: Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-08
Updated: 2017-03-18
Packaged: 2018-03-21 20:22:40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 25,804
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3704009
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/frantic65/pseuds/frantic65
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jack leaves the mountain and Ennis behind as the summer comes to an end.</p><p>Sequel to Boys of Summer</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A Parting of the Ways

**Author's Note:**

> This is the sequel to Boys of Summer and starts where that story left off.

A Change of Seasons

Sequel to Boys of Summer

Chapter 1- A Parting of the Ways

You silently returned to the main camp, the sheep be damned tonight. Before dawn’s first light you would be having a parting of the ways. Your separation would be of an indeterminate amount of time, and each of you had your own definition of the way things would be once you were reunited. But for tonight, you were perfectly attuned to each other, needing to cling together before the realities of a harsh and unforgiving world did it’s best to wrest you apart.

Arriving at the campsite, Ennis began to settle the horses, while you tended to the fire that had dwindled to mere embers in the hours that you had been gone. Mountain nights this late into the season grew cold, and the chill in the air hinted at frost and snow, causing a shiver to course up your spine as the kindling relit and a soft glow began to fill the fire pit.

You were worried. You were worried on so many levels, you had honestly lost count. But at the very top of your list of concerns was the fickle, late summer mountain weather, and how your ranch man was going to fare up here all alone. A freak late summer blizzard was not unheard of in these parts, and one man alone in a hostile environment? Well, the odds were against him, that’s for sure.

What if Ennis got hurt or fell ill? What if he was attacked by a bear like the one he stumbled upon at the beginning of the summer? Ennis had been damn lucky that time, but what if his luck didn’t hold out, and next time something awful happened to him? You would be many miles away, and even if Ennis survived one of the hundreds of horrible things that could befall him, it’s not like Joe Aguirre would have the decency to even let you know anything had happened. No, that son-of-a-bitch would as soon let Ennis rot as help him, hell he’d probably think Ennis deserved whatever misfortune occurred since he was a cock-sucking queer.

“Jesus!” you whispered, “Get a grip Twist!” 

“Jack?” Ennis had finished with the horses and had silently come up behind you, concern for your obvious agitation apparent in the way his hand warmly squeezed your shoulder. “What’s wrong, bud?”

You took a deep breath relaxing into his touch as always, turning quickly and embracing him fiercely. Ennis returned the embrace wholeheartedly, instinctively providing the comfort you needed at that moment, and no doubt feeling an echo of that relief go flowing through his own body.

“Shit, I am such a fuckin’ girl, Ennis.” you laughed humorlessly, your voice muffled against Ennis’ neck. “I was standing here worrying about all the fucked up shit that could happen to ya when you’re all alone up here. Stupid, huh?” You pulled back slightly and met a pair of serious brown eyes.

“Not so stupid as ya think, Jack.” Ennis answered, reaching one hand up to brush your hair back from your forehead. “I may have been havin’ some concerns ‘bout how things will go for ya too.”

“Well, ain’t we just a pair a deuces then, friend?” you laughed for real this time, and leaned forward to press your forehead against Ennis’ before touching your lips gently against his . Suddenly, you felt as though a weight had lifted from your chest, and as he deepened the kiss by licking at your lower lip and then thrusting his tongue deeply into your mouth, you felt the familiar heat ignite between you.

Ennis push walked you backwards until you felt the canvas tent flap rough against your back. You wrapped your arms tightly around his shoulders as you felt the opening behind you, and you tumbled together onto the relative softness of your entangled bedrolls. 

You lay still for a moment, breathless from both the fall, and the weight of his body covering yours, feeling his warm breath on your cheek , and you fist your hands in his soft blonde hair, dragging his mouth back to yours. His body covers yours completely, and he reaches for your hands still clasped tightly in his hair, loosening them and entwining his fingers in yours as he presses your arms down over your head. He ruts against you firmly and growls…fucking growls at you, and you moan in answer, arching your body upwards, leaving no mistake as to what you want from him this time.

He releases your fingers just long enough to rip open your shirt, before reaching once again for your hands. You never really thought of your hands as an erotic zone, but as Ennis restlessly thrusts against your body, his palms begin to slide against yours, and you have to tell him to slow down or this’ll be over before it starts.

He laughs softly, the tent too dark for you to see his face, but he does stop thrusting against you, except now he starts to nuzzle his way down from your neck to your chest, licking and nipping at your exposed skin as his hands still restrain you, causing you to whimper in frustration. His laugh ends in a groan as his tongue finds your nipple and you feel wanton as you push it further into his mouth encouraging him to suck on it as you moan his name.

He presses firmly on your arms as he slides further down your body, letting you know that he expects you to keep them in that position even after he lets you go, and your cock twitches as he whispers your name in the darkness, and plunges his tongue into your navel. His hands trail down your torso, following the path blazed by his mouth, stopping to roll your nipples in his fingers, rubbing them up against his work roughened palms, and you hiss as he pinches them in tandem, his fingernail scratching each hardened nub lightly as he moves on toward your stomach.

As he unfastens your belt and reaches inside your waistband to stroke you, you realize hazily that he is still fully clothed, and that maybe you should remedy that little imbalance, but then he pushes your jeans down past your knees and swallows your erection in one quick move, and you say good-bye to further coherent thought. He cups your balls with one hand and taps on your hole with the tip of his finger and you buck up into his mouth, so close to begging as you shout out his name.

He lets your dick slide from his mouth and he crawls up your body claiming your lips in a fierce kiss, pulling your tongue into his mouth and sucking on it until you finally move your arms down between you. You bypass his shirt, loosen his jeans and release his erection, palming it firmly and smearing the pre-cum over the head.

“Fuck me!” you murmur as you pull your tongue free, “Fuck me hard, Ennis. I wanna feel ya inside me tomorrow!”

Without a word, he sits up and straddles your hips. You hear the rustle of fabric as he removes his shirt and feel his weight and warmth disappear briefly as he loses his jeans. Then he is back, knees on either side of your hips and you raise your arms in front of you until you feel the warm skin of his chest. You map out the smooth planes of his stomach and the harder ridges of his ribs, memorizing the geography for the nights you will be apart, with only your hand to grant you release.

Ennis grabs one of your hands and brings it down to join with his around your erections. The slippery pre-cum dripping from both smooths the way, and you thrust together through the tight, wet tunnel of your combined hands. You feel your balls tighten and you struggle to speak before it’s too late.

“Ennis,” you pant out, “I’m not kiddin’. Ya need to fuck me now, boy!”

You almost groan in relief as he moves off to the side and quickly flips you over. Eagerly, you pillow your arms under your head and scramble up to your knees, and you feel Ennis grab your hips and position your ass to the height he prefers.

Bending over, he spreads your cheeks and you feel the wet heat of his saliva drip down your crack, followed immediately by his tongue circling your hole several times before he plunges it deeply within you. You feel your muscles resist for a brief moment and then you relax, trembling as he continues his assault on your hole. He slaps your ass lightly in warning as he feels you humping the bedroll, feverishly looking for some friction to bring yourself some relief.

You stop moving and hold your breath as you feel what you’ve been wanting all night finally nudging the entrance to your ass. Pushing his way past the first ring of muscles, Ennis pauses briefly to let you both catch your breath, and then with one smooth thrust he’s inside you completely and you close your eyes as the pain bleeds into pleasure and you wonder how you’ll live without him.

“Ya okay, bud?” he whispers with his lips pressed against your shoulder blades, and you nod your head, even though he can’t see you, and you reach back and tap on his thigh to let him know you’re ready.

With one hand firmly on your hip and the other grasping your shoulder, he begins to thrust steadily, hard and fast, the way you both like it. As he settles hi s pumping into a punishing rhythm, he begins to grunt on the in stroke while you moan loudly on the out stroke. You both begin to sweat, and his hand slips from your shoulder and buries itself deeply in your hair, pushing your head down and pulling it back up again in time with his strokes. You’ve kept your eyes closed because every color of the rainbow seems to be flashing behind your eyelids, and as he shifts his weight slightly, the rainbow turns into fireworks as he begins to hit your prostate on every stroke.

“Gonna shoot!” you gasp after he has kept up the pace for several excruciating yet exhilarating minutes, and you shudder and twitch as you feel his hand stroking your cock as it pulses and the musky smell of your seed fills the tent.

You feel his rhythm start to stutter and grow uneven and you know he is close, so you push your ass back into his thrusts and smile as you hear him loudly moan your name and come deep inside of you. He collapses on your back and you feel his lips on the back of your sweaty neck. You feel him soften inside of you and as he slips out, you wonder how long it will be before he fills you again.

He slides off your back and pulls you to your side, spooning you tightly up against his chest, and you reach back and softly stroke his cheek.

“Shit…I’m gonna miss ya Ennis.” You feel his arms tighten around your waist and his warm breath tickles your ear.

“Gonna miss ya too.” He mumbles against your neck and you recognize how difficult it is for him to admit this, for he is still a quiet man. Yet you’ve gotten his promise to follow you down the mountain as soon as his work is done here, and this is what will get you through the next few weeks alone.

You doze together peacefully for a while, but all too soon you turn in his arms and kiss him on his nose. “I’m hungry…let’s eat.” And you stroke his arm and start to feel around for your clothes.

Stepping out of the tent, the moonlight shines down upon the campsite, and you realize that you will miss this as well. You hope that you will find the same happiness and contentment with him on your uncle’s ranch…no…your ranch…yours….and someday soon…his.

So you cook dinner for him one last time, and you sit closely together, needing some part of you to always be touching him, almost superstitiously. At some point though, you go back in the tent with the lantern to pack your shit, and he stays out in front of the fire…waiting. He’s not the type to hover, and for once you’re glad that he has given you some space.

You look around one last time to see if you forgot anything, and that’s when you see it. It’s the shirt he was wearing earlier today at the pasture, and the bloodied arm draws your attention and you go over to it and pick it up. Telling yourself you’ll just pack it with your stuff so your Mama can wash it up right for him, you shove it into your duffle bag without another thought. You tell yourself you’ll mention it to Ennis before you leave, and then you banish it from your mind.

As you gaze at him across the firelight, the rising smoke dropping a fine veil between you, he glances up and your eyes meet. A slow, shy smile spreads across his face and it is the most beautiful thing you have ever seen in your life. You think back to the first time you saw him, leaning nervously against Aguirre’s piece of shit trailer, both of you casually examining the other, and you remember how the shy looks he shot you that day made you want him right from the start.

Nothing and everything had changed since that clear June day. You had set your sights on him right then and there, and you had never looked back. He was destined to be yours, no doubt about it, and so you had begun your single-minded campaign to make him yours. After all, you had nothing but time, and wide open spaces where you could get hopelessly tangled up in decoding the mystery that was Ennis Del Mar.

Time, and a whole hell of a lot of whiskey, had been the keys to unlocking the reasons for the mistrust and fear you sometimes glimpsed on his face in unguarded moments. They were the companions to the desperation and loneliness that lived in your own soul. You had spent your young life trying to find that someone who could fill that void, your innate optimism pushing you forward, even as your bastard of a Daddy was trying his best to keep you under his thumb. 

You had persevered, and the rewards were beyond what you had ever imagined, crying alone night after night in a drafty barn, or hiding in fear in your bedroom closet waiting for the sting of a leather strap to find you.

Yes… you had overcome the overwhelming odds that were stacked against you, and while you leaving the mountain without him by your side had never been a part of your original plan, you were flexible and had rolled with the punches. Ennis had promised to join you at the ranch at summer’s end, and you knew Ennis was a man of his word…as long as he didn’t get spooked. You bit your lip and walked over to stand before him.

You had done all you could to guarantee he would follow you, entrusted your heart and soul into his care as it were, and as he stood up to embrace you, you closed your eyes and held on.

The sky was beginning to lighten, and the morning birds were starting to stir when you could finally bring yourself to let go. You pulled back and felt a quick flash of happiness as he released you reluctantly, and then he bent down and kissed you gently, and you led him toward your horse.

You shared another kiss before you mounted up, and you felt his warm hands rest lightly on your thigh.

“No good-byes.” You told him as you looked down into his face, reaching down to brush your fingers across his lips. “I’ll see ya soon, okay? Remember, if ya can’t catch a ride to the ranch, call me and I’ll try to come get ya myself.”

Ennis held your gaze and you saw the hopeful man warring with the abandoned child in his eyes.

“I swear to ya, it’ll be all right, Ennis. We’ll make it work together, I promise.” You covered his hand with yours and squeezed it tightly, and then you let him go.

You were halfway down the path when you looked back and saw him standing exactly where you had left him. You raised your hand and waved, watching him until he returned the gesture.

“Please Ennis…please.” You whispered as you turned back around and faced the path down the mountain.


	2. Left Behind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ennis begins the lonely process of adjusting to life on the mountain with only memories of his time with Jack as company.

You watched him as he rode away, and you waved back when you saw him pause and salute you on the wooded trail. What you really wanted to do was run after him, jump into the saddle behind him, throw your arms around his waist and beg him not to go. Tell him that you loved him and that your place from now on should be with him, partners in life, watching out for each other. In your mind’s eye, you saw this play out so very clearly, you took two steps forward unconsciously, only stopping when you realized he had turned his horse away and was again heading down the mountain path.

You stood there for a minute with your arm raised in farewell until he disappeared behind the tree line, trying like hell not to feel like you’d now been three times abandoned, all before the age of twenty. You bent over and clutched your stomach as you felt the bile begin to rise up in your throat, and you moaned pitifully as your stomach muscles cramped painfully, and you vomited your last meal with him onto the ground in a heaping, smelly mess. You rubbed the back of your hand across your mouth, and dropped to your knees, striking the ground beneath you with your closed fists, not sure if you were mad at yourself for needing him so much, or whether you were angry at him for having left you behind.

Your rational self knew that Jack had not left you by choice, and that if he could have, he would have stayed with you, or somehow taken you with him. But the part of you that lay just beneath the surface, always watching and waiting for something bad to happen, whispered to you now, telling you that you were so fucked up that even another man didn’t want you . You had been so weak and had succumbed to your unnatural desires with Jack, and in the end you still wound up alone…a solitary man.

You stumbled to your feet, spitting on the ground, trying in vain to clear the rancid taste from your mouth. You leaned over to retrieve your hat from where it had landed face up in the dirt, and smacked it against your denim clad leg in an effort to remove the dust and grime. For some reason, a dirty hat was suddenly unacceptable to you, and you breathed a sigh of relief as you examined it and noticed it was once again back to its original condition.

You placed it back upon your head and smiled when you thought about what Jack would say about your sudden need for a clean hat. You gazed unseeingly before you, caught in a memory of another morning, not so long ago, when your hat was not the only thing to get dirty in the mountain soil.

_You stepped out of the tent, shirtless in the early morning sun, preparing to start the fire so you could heat up some water to wash up in. You ran your hands lightly down your chest, grimacing slightly as your fingers encountered the dried remnants of the combined spunk that had been deposited there the night before._

__

You felt your jeans tighten at the memory of how that spunk happened to get there, and you shifted uncomfortably in an effort to relieve the pressure. You squinted up into the early morning summer sunshine and then grunted in surprise as your hat went flying off your head to land face down in the clearing.

__

“What the fuck--?” you sputtered as you spun around, coming face to face with a laughing Jack Twist.

__

“Mornin’ son!” he drawled, his blue eyes seeming to reflect the cloudless sky above that you had just been admiring. “Ya lost your hat there, friend?” He snapped the towel he was holding sharply against your ass, and was off at a dead run, his teasing laughter ringing in your ears as you took off after him.

__

“Jack!” you bellowed as you chased him toward the far side of the camp. “Wait ‘til I catch ya…ya sum-bitch!” But in truth you weren’t angry at all. Hell, if you had the balls to admit it to yourself, you’d never felt as alive and carefree as you had these past weeks with Jack. Sure he could be an annoying pain-in-the-ass, but one look into his smiling blue eyes and you were ready to forgive him any fucking thing.

__

With your bare feet pounding into the soft bed of pine needles that carpeted the campsite, you saw him stumble slightly as he snatched your hat from the forest floor, giving you the extra time you needed to catch up with him, and you pounced. Your arms clasped around his waist and you tackled him to the ground, quickly pinning his legs beneath yours with an Indian whoop.

__

You eased off a little just so you could flip him on his back, and you stared into his flushed face for a heartbeat before you bent down and pressed your lips to his. You reached over and grabbed your hat from his hand as you released his mouth, planting it firmly back on your head. You mock glared down at him, excited by the expression on his face. It was part mischief and part fear, with an underlying dose of lust that went straight to your groin. You knew damn well you’d never harm a hair on his head, and you know he is aware and confident of that fact, but sometimes when he wanted to play rough, he’d poke at you like he would a sleeping lion, and you were only too happy to accommodate him in those circumstances.

__

“What the fuck’s your problem, boy?” you growled at him, as you pinned his wrists above his head with one hand, ghosting with your other hand down his naked torso. “Ya want me to kick your ass…or whut?”

__

You saw him shiver with desire at your touch, and his tongue poked out of his mouth in the way that made you want to fuck the shit out of him for the rest of your life.

__

“Naw, Ennis…” he had a way of drawing out the last syllable of your name that made it sound like he was fucking praying. “…want ya to ride me like a bull, boy. I need to be inside ya now.” And he bucked up as he finished speaking, challenging you to hang on tight, because it was going to be a fucking bumpy ride for sure.

__

You gazed searchingly into his face, because being penetrated was never your first preference, but you also knew that the position he was suggesting allowed you to have the most control, and you loved that he was willing to offer you that compromise. It reminded you of a time in your life when someone was there looking out for you, a time when you were still part of a family.

__

You nodded quickly, and were rewarded by a blinding, yet cheeky grin from the man you straddled beneath you.

__

“Yee-haw!” Jack yelled out so loud, he startled a pair of songbirds nesting in a nearby tree. “Now get your fine ass naked for me, but keep that goddamn hat on, ‘cause I’m gonna fuck it right off your head!” and when you released his hands to get up, he smacked you on said fine ass, and if you weren’t already riled, well damned if that wouldn’t have done the trick.

__

“Promises, promises.” You muttered beneath your breath as you gamely stripped, watching hungrily as Jack did the same, stroking his cock invitingly as he caught you looking. You groaned as he caught the slick from the tip and sucked it slowly from his fingers. You knew what he planned on doing with those fingers, and as he motioned you closer with his free hand, you felt yourself tremble when you realized you wanted to feel him inside you, and you wanted him now.

__

“C’mere,” he whispered around his fingers, letting you see how wet he was making them, licking them until they dripped with his saliva. “Let me make it good for ya, Ennis.”

__

You obeyed him blindly, your desire propelling you forward until you dropped to your knees by his side, and with one quick movement you straddled his hips as though you were mounting a horse. You both groaned as your ass brushed against his arousal, and he reached down between your legs with his wet fingers and slowly entered your ass, moaning as he felt your muscles give way and then clench his finger tightly as he went in deeper. You pushed your ass back against his invading digit, hungry for more but unable to ask him for what you wanted.

__

“Ya like that, don’t ya?” he was still whispering, and you nodded because the words still would not come. He nodded back and answered you by thrusting a second finger next to the first, scissoring them gently but efficiently, tapping lightly on your prostate and causing you to throw your head back and grunt. You slowly began to fuck yourself on his fingers, twisting your body for the best angle, searching for the most pressure on your prostate.

__

A part of you was mortified, disgusted by the extent of your lewd behavior, and a quiet voice inside your brain hissed, “Slut…fornicator…deviant!” But when your rhythm faltered and you opened your eyes, all you could hear was the man beneath you whispering, “Yeah, Ennis…come on now! Christ, I wish ya could see yourself!” and as he reached up to cup your cheek, your thoughts calmed, and he drew your focus back to him, and the pleasures he was bringing to you.

__

His eyes were glazed and he blinked slowly, and you smiled down at him, because you could see the effect you were having on him. You continued to ride his fingers, but you suddenly bent down, and began to lick a trail from his chest to his neck, pausing near his right ear to suck a mark into his skin before moving on to nip gently at his earlobe. You could hear his ragged panting in your ear, and you felt his warm breath near your throat. You pulled back slightly to look into his eyes, and you joined your mouths together, tongues meeting lazily in time with your thrusting.

__

“Now Ennis,” you heard him moan against your lips, “Ride me now!”

__

You lifted yourself off his body, mourning the loss of his fingers as you reached behind you and lined his cock up with your oh-so-ready hole. It seemed as though you both held your breath as he spread your cheeks, and even though you knew it was gonna hurt like hell, you impaled yourself deeply on him in one quick movement. His head slammed back onto the ground as he shouted your name into the summer sky, and you grit your teeth fighting not to shoot all over his stomach.

__

You were both perfectly still, then your knees slipped a little, causing Jack to moan, “Ennis, don’t fuckin’ move! I’m about two seconds from exploding here, and if you wiggle that ass again, it’ll be game over for me!”

__

You braced yourself against his chest, keeping as still as you could until he huffed out a sigh, and grasped your hips firmly, letting you know his orgasm had receded for now, and your bull was ready to be ridden.

__

Keeping the pace slow at first, you kept your arms in front of you still locked on his chest, leaning back into him on the down stroke, and closing your eyes each time his cock found your hotspot. As the speed picked up, the intensity built as well, and you felt his thrusts getting harder and rougher, just the way you liked it. Rutting noises were being pulled from your throat, and he was answering you in low growls and panting breaths. Finally, you felt as though you were simply bouncing up and down on his lap, and when you felt his hand begin to stroke your steadily leaking cock, you opened your eyes, and you felt the beginning jolt of your orgasm surround you.

__

You heard him calling out as you came, your orgasm causing your muscles to strongly clench his erection, and you knew his release was imminent. You felt his cock pulsing deeply inside you, bathing your channel with his warm seed.

__

“Holy Shit!” you heard him say after a minute, “That was some fuckin’ ride, Ennis!” Then he slapped you on your ass, laughing as you gave him the evil eye. “And lookie there,” he hooted as he pointed to the ground next to your still trembling knees, “Told ya I’d fuck that hat right off your head!”

You smiled now as you thought back to that morning, and you remembered how you had gotten your revenge later that same day, when you came up behind him washing the clothes in the creek, sending him and his hat tumbling face first into the chilly water.

“Jack Fuckin’ Twist!” you shake your head sadly as reality suddenly finds you, and you realize just how much you are going to miss him. You’re not worried about you, hell you’d been taking care of yourself for a long time now, but not him. He may have had a mean bastard for a Daddy, but he also had a Momma who loved him and took care of him as best she could. No, what worried you about Jack was that he always thought the best of someone, and where you would be wary and careful when faced with an unknown situation, he would be trusting and friendly. It scared the shit out of you.

Jack hadn’t had time to go into a lot of details with you, but something about the whole situation with this ranch deal made you uneasy, and you hoped it was just your normal pessimism that was coloring your feelings. All you knew for sure was that the sooner you were back in his arms, the happier you were going to be.

For now though, there was a camp to tend to, and sheep to protect, and you were going to apply your rancher’s work ethics to the job at hand, knowing deep inside that a certain blue eyed man was going to be on your mind constantly, unless you distracted yourself with your responsibilities.

You walked over to give your horse his morning feed, and as you leaned against his flank and rubbed him down, you shut your eyes and did something you hadn’t done in years. You whispered a prayer to the God your Momma had believed in, asking Him to please keep Jack safe on his lonesome journey home.


	3. Homeward Bound

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jack thinks of his time with Ennis as he continues his descent from the mountain.

Once you turned back to the trail, you relinquished your stranglehold on the reins and let the horse lead the way. You glanced back once more, knowing the camp would no longer be in your line of sight. You were hoping for the smallest sign of life, a puff of smoke through the trees…the sound of the thundering of hooves behind you as he caught up to you ,telling you he was coming with you. You let that dream play out for a few moments, before you shook your head to clear your thoughts and began to focus on the tasks at hand.

If all went according to your plans, he would be back in your arms in just a few weeks, and this separation would just become a dim memory…a hiccup on your road to happiness.

Despite your best effort to concentrate on all the things you needed to do after you were finally heading out of Signal, you found your thoughts kept wandering back to the campsite and sheep meadow you had left behind you.

You wondered what he was doing right now. Was he still in camp, maybe thinking about you? Or had he already headed back up to the sheep meadow to see if the predators had picked off any more of the flock last night?

You snorted derisively to yourself, knowing that the latter was the safe bet. One thing that you both admired and envied about Ennis was his almost compulsive need to protect those stupid, smelly sheep. You thought back to an argument you’d had with him about his anal work ethic with a frown. You couldn’t suppress a smile as you recalled the unexpected outcome of that particular disagreement.

~~You watched him wheel his horse toward the path and take off at a dead gallop. He hadn’t said a word to you before he left the camp. You threw your arms up in disgust and looked around for something that would be satisfying to kick, or break, or burn. Jesus, but that boy was the most stubborn, frustrating, fucked up person you had ever met.

“Fuck you, Ennis Asshole Del Mar!” you shouted in the general direction of the trail, knowing full well he was long gone and would have ignored you anyway even if he was within earshot.

You fell on your ass in the dirt in surprise when he suddenly reappeared, pulling up sharply on the reins to avoid trampling you.

“Whut the fuck did ya just say to me Twist?” He spit the words out, scowling down at you from the saddle. If looks could kill…well…you’d be seconds away from knocking on heaven’s door. Jesus, you were pissed as all hell at him, so why did you want him to drag your ass into the tent and teach it a lesson?

“I said…” you spoke very deliberately as you slowly stood up, pausing to brush the dirt from your jeans, and looking him dead in the eyes. “Go. Fuck. A. Sheep. Ennis Fucking Del Mar. Because you’re not getting near my ass again until ya apologize to me.”

You put your hands on your hips to let him know you meant business, and watched his face get as red as your Momma’s favorite roses before turning on your heel and stalking in the direction of the tent.

You started counting to ten, and had gotten to two and a half, when you heard his rapidly approaching footsteps, and you stumbled and nearly fell when he pushed you roughly from behind. You regained your balance quickly and immediately whirled around to face him, your finger poking him sharply in the chest.

“Don’t ya start nothing ya ain’t got the balls to finish Ennis!” his cave man reactions were starting to seriously piss you off. “I am not a piece of ass to be plowed into the ground every night, and then ignored the next morning because ya have to get back to the sheep before the fuckin’ sun’s barely cresting the mountains!”

“Well, whut do ya want me to do, Jack, huh?” Ennis grabbed your still poking finger and flung it aside, eyes flashing and jaw clenching. “I’m getting paid to watch over them sheep, and I aim to do just that. No way eighty-five of those fuckers are getting eaten on my watch…no way!”

You knew your mouth was gaping open, but try as you like, you couldn’t get yourself to shut it. There was no fucking way he had just blamed you for all them damned lightning fried sheep from last summer.

Well, now you were mad enough to spit…so you did…missing the goddamn ‘Good Shepherd’s’ boots by about an inch. You put your hands on his shoulders and pushed…hard.

“Take that back, asshole!” you grabbed him again and shoved harder. He was scrambling now to keep his balance. “And it was forty-two sheep, not eighty-fuckin’-five! ” You prepared to push him one more time, but he gripped your forearms painfully, blocking your shove. You were both glaring at each other, chests heaving, arms locked together as you each fought for control in the impromptu wrestling match.

Finally admitting to yourself that it was an even match, you snaked your foot behind his right knee, and cut his leg out from under him. You felt a twinge of guilt at resorting to dirty schoolyard fighting tactics, but got over it quickly as he pulled you down with him as he fell. You grunted as you landed on top of him, feeling a kernel of satisfaction at his answering yelp of pain.

Then suddenly, you felt your anger start to bleed away as you rolled together in the dirt, and the next time you came out on the bottom, you stopped fighting him, and raised your hand to his cheek in surrender. He flinched away from your touch, and it was then you saw the hurt and confusion starting to overtake the blazing anger in his eyes.

“Ennis…hey…Ennis,” you whispered softly, your quiet tone drawing his focus to you where harshness would surely have failed. You tried again to stroke his face, and this time he stilled beneath your touch. He allowed your fingers to wander, smoothing away the frown lines etched into his forehead, than trailing downwards to caress his parted lips.

“Ya know, would it really kill ya to at least have breakfast with me before ya go tearing off to the meadow? Hmmm?” You pushed yourself up onto your elbows and gave him a quick peck on the lips.

You saw the shadow of his earlier frown darken his brow for a moment, before he sighed and mumbled, “No, a course it won’t kill me, Jack.” He shot you a quick glance before continuing, “But ya gotta promise that ya won’t try no bullshit to keep me here past breakfast if I do. Understand?”

“Understand.” You agreed easily and were content with the compromise. After all, you usually wound up visiting him in the meadow around lunchtime most days anyway. He was always much more agreeable to your suggestions on ways to pass the time when his bleating charges were surrounding him. You put up with the sheep smell because Ennis was usually one horny bastard after lunch.

“What else, Ennis?” you looked up at him expectantly. You were ready to forgive and forget and move on, but not without one more concession from your man. You still had some pride left.

He looked at you with some consternation before realizing you meant business. “I’m sorry I ignored ya this morning.” He bent down and gave you a quick kiss.

“And…?” You kissed him back, but he needed to work a little harder if he was expecting a reward.

“And I’m sorry I suggested ya were to blame for last summer’s sheep massacre.” You looked at him suspiciously, his tone was just this side of sarcastic, but you’d let him slide this time. You were getting harder the longer he was perched on top of you, and you could feel for yourself that his cock was firmly in agreement with yours.

“Apology accepted, friend. I got strong work ethics too, ya know?” You grabbed his ass and squeezed, before you pressed your lips against his again, this time with some purpose and fire behind the kiss. Maybe just a quick meeting of the mutual admiration society was called for while he was still distracted.

“Mmmm…work ethics, is that what you’re calling it Jack?” he rumbled a laugh that tickled your chest, but he didn’t move his weight off of you, so you took your hands off his ass and wrapped your arms around his shoulders. You pulled him closer still, and pressed your forehead against his, smiling as you felt him relax into your embrace.

“Yeah, Ennis, and yours is truly impressive.” You moved in to close that last inch that separated your lips from his, but he pulled back teasingly, laughing softly as you grabbed the back of his neck and pulled his mouth to yours. “A course you’ve got many impressive…uh…qualities, and I appreciate every last inch…um…one of them.” You opened your mouth and licked his lips, inviting his tongue to join yours, humming deep in the back of your throat when you felt his tongue begin a tentative exploration of your teeth.

You encouraged the kiss gently, but let him take the lead, knowing that sometimes after an argument, he needed to be in control. You weren’t threatened by it…hell…it was no sacrifice at all to let him drive. Once he’d gotten over his initial confusion about wanting to be with a man, Ennis had been ready to try almost anything, and you were a more than willing partner.

Now, as you lay on your back in the dirt, his body pressed tightly against yours, your head was swimming from his all out assault on your lips. You felt his rough hands on your face, restlessly smoothing your hair back. You heard your name repeated, an almost soundless murmur against your throat as he steadily licked his way down from your lips to the curve of your shoulder.

You felt yourself move against him, silently offering yourself to him, letting him know that you wanted to be a part of him, and that you were never going to leave him…and you expected the same from him.

Something had shifted in your relationship that day, a basic trust that had been missing until that exact moment, suddenly clicked into place, like a piece of a jigsaw puzzle. You had felt him pause for a moment, his mouth almost directly over your heart, before he continued on his journey, both of you strangely silent, a quiet intensity surrounding you.

You separated only long enough to remove clothing, than you fell back together, exactly as before. You wrapped your legs around his waist, and urged him by action only, to take you, to close whatever distance was still between you, and complete you.

He paused only long enough to prepare you with his spit and slick, before thrusting into you with one long, smooth stroke. You caught your lower lip in your teeth at the slight pinch, but you made no sound. He was perfectly still, so you opened your eyes, and smiled at the question on his face. You nodded, letting him know you were ready, and you moved together in a rhythm that was familiar, yet somehow different this time.

He brought you to the brink with a few strokes of his hand, and as you slipped over the edge into a white hot oblivion, you pulled him with you, muscles clenching him tightly, lips seeking his blindly, bodies joined together, touching completely.~~

You were still smiling as you approached the rickety bridge that was the start of the dirt road that would lead you back to the civilized world. You dismounted as you approached the old pick-up and horse trailer that were waiting there for you. The Basque driver leaning against the truck straightened up and walked toward you to take your horse’s reins, and you had a smoke while he got the horse settled in the trailer.

You opened the truck door and sat sideways on the bench seat, staring steadily at the mountain you had just descended for the last time. Your gut clenched and your mouth grew dry as the reality of just what you were leaving behind hit you with the force of a freight train. As the truck began to pull out onto the road heading into Signal, you pressed your palms tightly into your suddenly burning eyes.

You were homeward bound at last…so why did you feel like you were going the wrong way?


	4. The Fickle Hand of Fate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jack has a disquieting run-in with Joe Aguirre that leaves him worried about leaving Ennis behind.

…do you wish there was a way to change the fickle hand of fate?

“Twist of Fate” by Pennywise

You stood basking in the morning sunshine, willing your suddenly leaden feet to mount the trailer steps that loomed before you like the mountain you had just descended. At the moment, hiking back up that mountain was a much more attractive option to you than entering Joe Aguirre’s snake hole of an office. You planted your foot firmly on the bottom step, and silently cheered yourself on. “No turning back now, Twist. “ Where was the damn whiskey when you needed it most?

You reached the second step as you felt your muscles begin to freeze, and suddenly an image of Ennis flashed before you. In that second, you knew that you could face the Devil himself, as long as the end result meant that Ennis would be with you forever. Shit, you sounded like a romantic fool, but the cold, hard truth was that a life without him had ceased to be something you could live with at some point over the past few weeks. 

You had sworn to him that you would take care of things…take care of him. All you had wanted, and finally had received, was his promise to come and find you when the summer was over. You took a deep breath and wiped your sweaty hands on your jeans, before reaching out with a slightly shaky hand to pull the door open.

You stepped across the threshold, removed your hat, and stood quietly inside the doorway, waiting for the bulky shape sitting at the messy desk across the room to acknowledge you. You stood still although you were aching to fidget like a small child. You were a man now, and you had someone depending on you to be strong and pave the way for that sweet life you had craved and coveted your entire life.

“Well, look what the cat dragged in!” Joe Aguirre smiled nastily as he stubbed out a cigarette in the overflowing ashtray on his desk. “About time ya got your lazy ass down here. What’s the matter; have a hard time saying ‘Adios’ to your good buddy?”

“Good Morning, Mr. Aguirre,” you nodded your head in greeting, resisting the urge to throttle the bastard by gripping your hat tight enough to bend the brim. “Yeah, Ennis and I have become good friends over the summer, but my family needs my help now, and I’m sure Ennis can take care of himself.”

Judging by the sour look on Aguirre’s face, you were fairly sure he understood the subtle hint you were giving him. “Well Twist, I imagine Del Mar will be just fine up there all by himself, but accidents can happen, especially if someone is careless. Do ya consider Del Mar to be a careless man Twist? Is he a risk taker, or does he like to play it safe?” He leaned back in his chair, and you wanted him to topple over so badly, you almost ran over to do it yourself.

“Ennis is a mighty fine man, Mr. Aguirre, and while I would describe him as more cautious than careless, I think if push came to shove, he would take a risk for the right reason.” You struggled to keep your tone casual and even, thankful for the deep tan you were sporting that masked the fact that your temper was quickly rising. Sanctimonious, fat fuck, what the hell game was he playing at?

“Is that right?” Aguirre smirked. “Tell me, what are his after summer plans? Is your ‘good friend’ planning on looking you up? Maybe he can get a job with ya, wouldn’t that be cozy?”

You felt a flare of panic at the direction the conversation was heading. There was no doubt Aguirre was circling you like a shark, just waiting for the first hint of blood to send him into a feeding frenzy. Before you could answer, he laughed, and you fought not to shudder at the sound.

“Wait a minute, I remember now,” Aguirre snapped his fingers and thoughtfully rubbed his chin. “He mentioned a special someone waiting for him, a pretty little fiancé that he was gonna marry right quick. Won’t have much time for friends after he’s a married man, I reckon. Before ya know it, he’ll have her barefoot and pregnant. Yep, he’ll make a real fine family man, struggling to be a good provider for his wife and kids. Seems to me there ain’t much room left for a friend there…good…bad..or indifferent.”

You stood perfectly still, willing your trembling leg to stop, certain that Aguirre would feel the vibrations from clear across the room, and move in for the kill. You needed to calm the fuck down, get your goddamn money from the son-of-a-bitch, and get the hell away from him…now! But first, you needed to insure that he wasn’t going to fuck with Ennis after you were gone.

“Listen, Mr. Aguirre,” you gave him an easy smile, and felt a boost in your confidence as his scowl deepened at your apparently calm demeanor. In fact, if this wasn’t so goddamn important you would have laughed in the asshole’s face.

“I appreciate your hiring me this summer, but I am frankly confused by what ya seem to be suggesting ‘bout the nature of my friendship with Ennis.” You took a deep, bracing breath and continued, thinking carefully about how to phrase the rest of your response. “You’re absolutely right, Ennis does have a fiancé back home, and I know he plans on looking for a ranch job when he’s done here. He also knows that I’m going to need help on my…my uncle’s ranch, and I have extended to him an open invitation to come work for me anytime.”

You kept the smile firmly in place, and prayed that your expression backed up your words. You had admitted nothing, did not dispute Alma’s existence, and you had let the spiteful fucker know that when Ennis joined you at the ranch, it would be for the perfectly legitimate reason of employment. You were not about to clarify that Alma or any other female would not be entering into that equation.

You cast a quick glance at the binoculars hanging on the wall behind him, and you remembered his last visit to the campsite, where they were prominently displayed on his chest as he taunted you then. You had not shared your suspicions with Ennis, knowing that the thought that they had been observed would destroy him, and ruin any future chances of happiness with him.

“Ya think you’re a clever one, don’t ya Twist?” Aguirre half rose from his seat, a sneer plastered on his florid face, beefy arms braced on his desk. “My advice to ya is to turn around and walk out that door, and don’t even think about showing your pretty face in these parts again, boy. People have eyes, and people like to talk, and if the wrong words make their way into the right ears…well…ain’t no telling what might happen. So ya take your pay, and ya go prancing on home to that ranch a yours, but if I was ya…I’d be watching my back, and keeping my fuckin’ nose clean. “

You felt a cold fury spread through your body as he slammed his fists on the desk, but you held your temper. If all that was at stake was your well-being, then you would take extreme pleasure in kicking Aguirre’s ass from one end of Signal to the other. But until you had what was yours safely at your side, home alongside you, your only choice was to swallow your anger, and save it for another day. Your Momma’s church preached turning the other cheek, but secretly you had always liked the sound of an eye for an eye.

You walked up to the desk, held your hand out for your pay, and nodded grimly to Joe Aguirre. “Thank you very much, Mr. Aguirre.” And then you did the second hardest thing you’d had to do in your entire life…you kept your head up high, and turned your back on him, not realizing until you were back in the sunlight, that you had been listening for the sound of a bullet being chambered as you walked away.

You bypassed your truck and headed straight for the bar. There was no way in hell that you were going to be able to drive until your hands stopped shaking and there was no way that was going to happen unless you fortified your soul with at the very least a beer or two. Sitting at the bar waiting to get served, you dropped your head down onto your arms, and thought back to the last time you had been here…with him.

You had already decided that you wanted him before you invited him drinking, but in order to form the perfect strategy you were going to have to get the boy to talk, for Christ’s sake, and that had proved to be the biggest challenge you had ever faced.

The bartender plunked your beer down in front of you, and you grunted your thanks. This was one time you preferred to be alone with your thoughts, not shooting the shit with anyone who’d listen.

You took a pull on your beer, and tried to relax. You needed to try to release the toxins that Aguirre had spewed into your brain. You knew he was mostly bluffing, he was a big fish in a little pond, and he was just throwing his weight around. Still, what if he did whisper what he knew in the ears of those who enjoyed hurting people who were different from them? Maybe not today, but what if he got a bunch of roughnecks riled up and they decided to wait for Ennis and teach him a lesson?

You had told Ennis to come to you at summer’s end, but what if he couldn’t? And now you had no way to warn him about the lynch mob that might be lying in wait for him, hell, you had no idea when he’d be leaving the mountain anyway. There were too many factors that would go into when Aguirre called the sheep down. You were going to have to watch the weather reports and keep alert. Your uncle’s ranch was less than a day’s drive from here; you’d find some way to be here to bring Ennis home.

Home. You smiled when you thought of what that word meant to you now. You and Ennis had made a home for yourselves up there on the mountain, and it had been the happiest time of your life.

Shit, if you had to pinpoint the moment that Ennis first felt like home to you, it would have to be the first time he kissed you. It wasn’t the first time you made him laugh, although his smile had almost melted you into a puddle…so unexpected and breathtaking. It hadn’t been the first time you’d caught him watching you across the campfire, his brown eyes so warm, but so confused. No, it was definitely that first kiss, and the hundreds that had followed it, that ultimately had bound you together for always.

At the time, you had sensed that he would view kissing as something taboo, and while it would have been a much welcomed addition to your sexual routine, you knew you had to bide your time. Ennis had liked to fuck right from the start, and if you had left it to him, you would have spent the summer with a sore ass and nothing to show for it. You’d had more experience than him, and even though it was with girls, you knew how much better sex could feel when there was a little tongue action involved.

After that first time of raw, animal fucking, you had watched carefully for an opportunity to both expand Ennis’ sexual horizons and maximize your own pleasure. Your chance came fairly quickly, and surprisingly he was the one that had approached you that night.

You knew he had spent a good bit of time sitting by the fire, torturing himself with his indecision. You had wisely retired to the tent soon after supper, sensing that although he wanted to be with you again, he had yet to come to terms with what he considered his unnatural desires.

You were pretty confident he was going to choose you, but just to make sure the deck was stacked in your favor, you weren’t quiet or modest as you bustled about in the tent. He could catch a glimpse of you if he really tried, and you proudly stripped down and lay back on your bedroll to wait him out.

You had started to think that maybe you had overestimated your appeal and wondered if you were going to have to go round him up after all, when suddenly, he was there. That was the night you’d introduced foreplay into his life and he’d proven to be an apt pupil.

You kissed him gently, just a light, slightly moist pressing of lips, a quiet promise of things to come. If there was any inch of you he hadn’t claimed by that point, that virgin kiss sealed your fate. You encouraged him to come closer, and when he rested his head upon your chest, you felt as though you had finally awakened from a lifetime of sleep.

His hands fluttered indecisively, his touch was tentative, yet reverent, and when you rolled him over and covered his body with yours, you felt his surrender, and you took complete control of his pleasure. Fucking was not to be on the agenda this night, your ass was still sore, and you knew he was nowhere near ready to experience any sort of penetration, so you kissed him again, with tongue and teeth, and his moan was the most beautiful sound you had ever heard.

You pulled his lower lip into your mouth and sucked on it gently, while you explored his lightly muscled chest and tiny brown nubs with your fingers. He was moving restlessly beneath you, not exactly struggling, but not yet settled, a part of him still fighting his body’s reaction to another so similar to his own.

“Ennis,” you whispered sweetly in his ear, your breath making him shiver, “Let me make ya feel good, boy. Ya have no idea how crazy ya make me.” You were almost crooning to him, and you felt that last measure of tension leave his body, and then…he was yours.

“That’s right…trust me boy. You’re perfect…just perfect” you licked the side of his neck, pushing your hand through his blond curls, moving up to cover his entire face from temple to chin in small nibbling kisses.

“Ja…uhh!” he struggled to speak, but his eyes…yeah his eyes told a different story. You watched breathlessly as the clouds of confusion lifted from his expression to be replaced with a golden light that pierced right through to your soul, and you laughed and covered his mouth again, reveling in the feel of his tongue rubbing against yours.

You reached between and unfastened first his jeans, and then your own, pulling him carefully free, before seeing to your own erection. You heard his breath catch as you rubbed your cocks together, and you found the combined slick on the tips and spread it down your shafts to create a sensual friction.

You rutted against each other, mouths still joined, and you felt his hand press softly against yours, so you grabbed his fingers and guided him to where your erections were straining together, encouraging him to explore and enjoy the mutual masturbation.

Hours, or maybe days later, you felt him stiffen against you, and the warmth of his seed spilled over your hand. You lifted your hand to your still kissing mouths, and shared his essence with him. The sound that came from deep within him pushed you over the edge, and you shuddered silently as your balls emptied, and the musky smell of your spunk combined with sweat and his own unique scent, left you feeling sated and safe.

You rubbed your seed into first his stomach and then your own, suddenly needing to feel on some primal level as though you had marked each other…permanently.

That was the first night you had slept together, his head on your chest, your arms cradling him tightly. You knew then that you were never letting go.

“…another beer, bud? “ You shot a confused look at the bartender before you remembered where you were.

“Uh no…I’m good…thanks.” You needed to get your ass in gear and get on the road. Now that you’d shaken off the worst of your disquiet, you were eager to put some distance between you and Joe Aguirre.

You stepped up to your truck, relieved to see that Joe Aguirre’s car was gone, spent another hour getting the piece of shit to turn over, and headed toward the main highway. You kept watch over the mountain in your outside mirror for as long as you could before a bend in the road erased its high peaks from your sight.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Joe Aguirre's POV during the meeting between Jack and him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a short but sadly necessary chapter from Aguirre's POV. He's a giant douchebag but I'll post the next chapter very soon in apology.

You watch him strut to the door and your fingers are itching to grab your shotgun and rid the world of another piece of queer boy shit. You go so far as to reach for it, wanting the satisfaction of watching the faggot piss himself when he hears you lock and load the weapon, but a shot in the back would be too hard to explain away, so you refrain from giving in to temptation.

That boy was trouble from the moment you set eyes on him last summer. You gave him the job because no one else had applied for a position that was quite frankly, the bottom of the barrel. Shitty working conditions, crap wages, and complete isolation from civilization didn’t exactly bring prospective employees running. You were out of time and patience to get it filled, so you sent him off against your better judgment. The instant dislike you felt for him confused you, but once he was up on the mountain, you pretty much forgot about him anyway.

Until the day you’d gotten the report that damn near fifty of the herd was killed on his watch in one night. As far you were concerned, lightning aside, Twist was to blame for not trying harder to protect his charges. If it was your decision to make, you would have made him pay for every dead sheep out of his summer wages, but the assholes in the ivory tower had vetoed that suggestion. The little fucker lived a charmed life, and then had the gall to show up on your doorstep again this year wanting another free ride for the season.

Once again, you were desperate to fill the position, and this time to make matters worse, the idiots in charge demanded that there be two men up on the mountain, some safety concern for insurance purposes or other bullshit. So, when you drove up and saw the pair of deuces loitering near your trailer…well…you knew it would be another fucked up summer.

So, you gave them the lowdown and you added your own interpretation of the rules. There would be two separate camps, one for the tender and one for the herder, using the excuse of cutting down on predator kills during the night as explanation. Let them eat together, but no sleeping in the same camp. You made sure Twist got the shitty end of the deal too, exiling him up with the smelly sheep each night with no campfire and no extra comforts.

The blond fellow, Del Mar, seemed a quiet sort, and looked like he came from good ranch stock, but when you saw Twist eyeing that boy up right in front of you, that’s when you realized why you disliked him so much…he must be a fucking faggot! You could see right away that the solitary nights rule had pissed him off, especially when you sensed that Del Mar was the type that would follow those rules to the letter…you almost laughed at the consternation on Twist’s face. Serves you right, you goddamn fairy!

So off they went, and once again it was out of sight and out of mind for you, until one day about six weeks after they’d headed up Brokeback, you received a call from Twist’s Momma. It seemed Twist’s uncle had gotten ill with pneumonia and had taken a sudden turn for the worse. Mrs. Twist asked you if you would be kind enough to get a message to her baby boy, letting him know how things stood. You begrudgingly promised to deliver the message pronto, and she thanked you kindly telling you she would be in touch in a few days to give you an update. It seemed as though if Twist’s uncle kicked the bucket, that piece of shit was to inherit the family ranch that Mrs. Twist had been raised on, since her only brother was a widower with no children.

The next morning you headed off before dawn, eager to deliver some bad news to one of your least favorite people before he headed back to the sheep meadow after breakfast. You figured some covert observation of the campsite might be prudent, so you reined in at a good distance taking cover in the dense summer tree line, and raised your binoculars to your eyes.

At first, the clearing appeared to be deserted, and you frowned at the thought that Twist had already left for the meadow. Then you panned to the right, and there he was; standing apparently deep in thought, before the smoldering fire pit. You watched with interest as Del Mar approached him from behind, and you nearly choked on your tongue when he pulled Twist tightly against his chest in an intimate lover’s embrace. They rocked together gently, as though swaying to a melody only the two could hear. For a moment, you were confused by the tranquility and peacefulness of the scene playing out before you…what the fuck were these two playing at?

You considered emerging from your hiding place, and confronting them both right then and there, but the odds would be against you, and you saw their shotgun, most likely loaded and ready to fire, close by in the saddlebag of Del Mar’s mount. Twist most likely was a lightweight, and probably a poor shot, but his fucking boyfriend had a dangerous edge to him, he was a wild card, and instead you decided to bide your time.

Del Mar whispered into Twist’s ear, appeared to tighten the squeeze for a second, before breaking away, and striding confidently to mount his horse and quickly ride off toward the meadow path. You swung the binoculars back around to observe Twist, and caught him staring wistfully and dreamy-eyed after Del Mar…what a goddamn pussy! Although it appeared that Twist had somehow convinced the other man to change places with him, so maybe Del Mar was just pussy whipped instead.

You gave him a few minutes to get his fucking head out of the clouds or whatever, before you rode into the camp almost jovially, happy to be the bearer of bad news from home.

The second time you had paid him a visit, to let him know his Momma needed him to come home after all, you got a real eyeful with your binoculars. That time you’d caught Twist riding Del Mar like a fucking rodeo cowboy right outside on the goddamn ground. You almost lost your breakfast, but after you gagged a few times at their perverted acts, you’d managed not to vomit.

And now, the asshole had the balls to challenge you in your own domain, acting like his shit didn’t stink, dropping not so subtle hints about the plans he had for him and Del Mar to shack up together at the end of the summer on his Big Queer Ranch. You weren’t fooled for a minute when he spouted out how he knew all about Del Mar’s girl, no way did you think for one little minute that Twist’s ‘open invitation’ included her. You snorted in disgust, and opened the file drawer in your desk.

Your fingers sorted through the D’s and stopped when you saw the file you wanted staring up at you. Well, two could play at this game Twist. You found the information you were looking for, and laughed softly as you picked up your phone and dialed. While you waited for your call to connect, you remembered the day Del Mar sat in this very office while you filled in all the pertinent information on his employee records.

“Who is your emergency contact person, Del Mar?” you had asked in disinterest, you hated doing this bullshit paperwork yourself. You glanced up and saw a slightly confused look flicker across his face.

“Uh…whut exactly would ya call ‘em for, Mr. Aguirre?” he was mumbling in his deep voice, a portrait in nervousness, as he tapped his booted foot restlessly on your floor.

“In case you fuckin’ end up getting’ your ass injured or killed up there on Brokeback, who should we call to tell ‘em to come pick up your carcass?” you had no patience for answering stupid questions when you could be paying a visit to the piece of ass you had on the side instead. You were feeling horny and your cunt of a wife had been giving you blue balls all week, the bitch.

“Oh…um…well I guess the best person to notify in that case would be Jim Beers. I’m supposed to marry his daughter Alma come November, so if something were to happen to me, I’d like him to know, and if there’s any money that’s due me, I’d want her to have it.” You stared at him and raised your eyebrows in disbelief as he blushed pink before your eyes. It was a fucking miracle he’d even been able to speak to a girl, let alone get up the nerve to propose. This Alma must be a quiet little mouse herself you thought with disdain. “How noble, Del Mar.” was your sarcastic reply.

Now you thought back to that conversation with glee as the line connected and a man’s voice answered. “Hello?”

“Hello,” you replied in as friendly a tone as you could muster, “I would like to speak to a Mr. Jim Beers, is he available?”

You almost giggled with delight when the man on the other end of the line answered, “This is Jim Beers, who’s this?”


	6. Wishing You Were Here

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Back up on the mountain, Ennis is missing Jack something fierce.

Your days and nights were beginning to run together into a mind numbing sameness. You found yourself spending more time in the meadow with the sheep, because the emptiness of the main camp was just too hard for you to take.

At least in the meadow, the sounds and even the smells of the livestock brought you some measure of comfort. Yet, the extent of your restlessness was surprising to you, as life had taught you to quietly accept whatever was thrown your way. So why did you suddenly feel as though you were simply marking time now?

You continued to do the job that was expected of you, but with more and more frequency as the days passed, you found you resented having to fulfill those expectations. You wanted to move on with your life…you wanted to be with him.

You found yourself listening for the sound of hooves meandering up the mountain path several times a day. Each time you felt a fleeting second of euphoria as you strained to catch sight of him, only to have reality crash around your head when you remembered he was now far away from this mountain…and you.

Sometimes at night, when you bravely ventured down into the main campsite, usually out of necessity because the supplies you brought with you to the meadow had dwindled to crumbs, you would stoke the fire and break out the whiskey. You never drank enough to get fall down drunk, you knew he expected you to stay safe, but after a few solid pulls, you relaxed enough to take yourself in hand and imagine it was him that was stroking you to completion. His voice echoed in your brain, telling you all the dirty, nasty things you were going to do to each other when you were reunited. You felt his breath tickle your ear as he whispered how much he wanted you to fuck him, and sometimes as you came, the tears came too, quietly forcing their way out of your tightly closed eyes.

It was then that you would whisper back, telling him how much you missed him…how much you wished he were still here with you. Often, those were the nights you would fall asleep in front of the fire, because to sleep in the tent without him there just didn’t seem right.

Your spirits lifted slightly after there were three nights in a row where the temperature dropped enough to leave lacy patterns of frost on the high meadow grass. You woke up shivering and disoriented one morning after a summer storm dumped a foot of snow on the mountain, and as you hopped up and down trying to thaw your frozen limbs, you laughed out loud knowing that soon the word would come to bring the flock back to Signal. “Jack…” you breathed his name like a prayer.

You decided to take a ride to clear your head, and you chose the path that followed the lazy twists and turns of the stream deliberately…you had ridden this way before…with him. You smiled as you remembered the frustration you felt as he alternately played his godawful harmonica and entertained you with his never ending chatter. You were mostly used to both by then, but it was an unspoken rule that you had to cuss and complain from time to time or risk bringing on a bout of the blues…and you had quickly discovered that a pouting Jack was something to be avoided at all costs.

You rode along, easy in the saddle, for at least another hour, deep in thought, watching the rapidly melting snow disappear, revealing the mountain flowers beneath, until you pulled up sharply as you realized you had reached your destination.

#####

“Holy Shit, Ennis..would ya look at that!” Jack had quickly dismounted and for a moment you had thought he was going to jump in the stream fully clothed. “Did ya know this was here?”

You shook your head silently and slowly walked to his side, a warm tingle running through your body as he grabbed your hand and entwined your fingers together tightly. You both stood there watching the sunlight paint rainbow prisms through the mists that were rising from the hot springs before you. The springs were amazing by themselves, but the waterfall that fed them gave the entire area a mystical feeling, as though you were the last people on earth…no… more like you were entering the Promised Land your Mama would tell you about when you were a small boy.

“Uh-uh Jack…I’m surprised ya didn’t stumble on it when ya were here last summer.” You were having a hard time concentrating while he was using his thumb to stroke soft circles into your hand.

“Well, let’s just say last summer I didn’t have much of a reason to go off exploring and looking for a spot to have a romantic rendezvous.” He squeezed your hand and winked, and you quickly glanced away as you felt the blush race across your face and down into your neck.

“Knock it off, Jack!” you blustered, trying to avoid him teasing you about how fucking cute you were when you blushed. “Ain’t nothin’ romantic ‘bout us. Two men ain’t sweethearts, ya horse’s ass.”

“Hmm…” he said using his free hand to rub his chin, a serious look on his face. “I don’t know Ennis. There are lots of times I call ya sweetheart to myself…sweetheart.” He waited a beat as you started to sputter, than he snorted out a laugh, and moved around in front of you, trapping your body against his as you tried half-heartedly to break free.

“Jack, I swear…if ya don’t stop saying shit like that, I’m gonna toss you in this creek with all your clothes still on!” you grabbed his shoulders and tugged lightly, pretending you were going to carry out your threat.

“Shit Ennis, that wouldn’t be no fun. The only way either of us is goin’ in this water is buck naked just like the day we were born.” He leered at you, and headed toward the water’s edge, peeling off his clothes as he went. “C’mon boy, I’m sick of always washing up in water that’s cold enough to shrivel my balls into walnuts. Get outta them clothes and jump in, I promise to make it worth your while….sweetheart!” he laughed again as you glared, and he started splashing around in the water like a child…like he had nary a care in the world.

You quickly finished stripping and followed him into the steaming water more cautiously, eyes searching for any sign of danger, certain that in water as warm as this, exotic things like piranhas or barracudas might lurk.

“Hey Jack!” you called to him nervously, “Ya think there’s anything dangerous lives in these springs…y’know..like snakes or alligators.”

“Naw…never heard of no alligators in Wyoming, Ennis…but,” you shot him a look as he glanced around uneasily. “I have heard tell of people gettin’ surprised by snakes in these parts.” He moved closer to you as though seeking comfort. “I’ve been told that they’re about nine inches long and they’ve been known to swim right up an unsuspecting swimmer’s ass.” He came up behind you and poked his hard cock into the crack of your ass for emphasis, and you swore at him and decided that he needed to be dunked head first into what you now hoped really were snake infested waters to further investigate the situation.

Soon, you were both splashing around like seals, slippery limbs sliding together as you both wrestled and rolled your way from one end of the steaming spring to the other, gasping for breath and sputtering for air. The heat of the water was soothing, the drops of water sparkling on the ends of his eyelashes enticing, and before you could stop yourself, you had leaned in to taste the wetness of his skin. He immediately stilled and nuzzled his cheek against your nose as you began to pull your lips away.

“Stay.” He whispered as his mouth closed in on yours. “Stay with me.”

You breathed in his air, and puffed it gently back into his mouth. “Where else would I go, Jack?” you asked softly, puzzled at the shadow that crossed his face when you raised your head from his mouth.

“Never mind.” He smiled at you sadly, and swam away, leaving you confused and frustrated, wondering what you had done to disappoint him this time.

The earlier playful mood had been broken, and you floated along, alone, trying to decide what to do next. You weren’t stupid, you knew him well enough to know that he was persistent, and once he was determined to have something, he would push until he got it. Christ, you hadn’t been up here more than a week or two when he had you breaking the goddamn law, shooting an elk on government property, just to shut him up about the fucking beans he bitched about day and night.

You knew the pattern by now, and you had an idea that he had probably convinced himself that your mutually agreed upon one-shot thing, should really continue after the summer was over. You sighed, trying to decide if you should confront him and get this over with now, or wait for him to bring it up when he was ready. You decided on the latter as you watched him swimming solemnly; about as far away from you as he could get.

You glanced over at the waterfall thoughtfully and swam toward it, knowing that Jack was watching you while casually making it seem like he wasn’t. You laughed to yourself, because you also knew that what you planned to do next was going to get his full attention pretty quick, and maybe get his mind off of whatever had him so upset.

As you approached the waterfall, you noticed several levels of flat rocks, arranged by nature in a roughly stair shaped formation, ending in a much longer, smoother looking rock located directly under the spray of the falls. As far as falls went, this one was a rather narrow, gentle cascade of water, colder than the heated springs below that it fed, but compared to the rest of the mountain waters you’d sampled, pleasingly moderate in temperature.

You slowly approached the first of the stairs, deliberately taking your time as you saw Jack watching you curiously, treading water as he waited to see what you would do next. You felt a shiver of excitement run down your spine as you stood to your full height in the steaming water, and placed your foot on the first step.

You felt the warm water dripping off of your body as you mounted each step, still keeping the slow, deliberate pace, your back to him, the feeling of his eyes drinking in your wet, naked body, helping you keep your posture straight and proud.

You reached the top shelf of rock, and you immediately stepped into the flow of water streaming down on you from above, baptizing you in its warm, comforting spray. You closed your eyes, and turned instinctively in the direction you had last seen him, and you raised your hands, thrusting your fingers into your own hair, surprised at how aroused you were, knowing you were putting on a show for his eyes only.

You shook your head, sending drops of water flying in all directions, and you gasped as you felt a warm body press up against your back, hands reaching around you, to gently stroke the erection jutting proudly out from your body. You felt his lips begin sucking the water from the spot where your neck met your shoulders, and you heard him moan, “Christ Ennis, is this all for me?” and he pushed his hard cock up against your ass as he asked, leaving no doubt as to what he was asking of you.

You nodded your head in permission, and slid one of your hands from your hair, reaching behind you to stroke his cheek, pressing his lips into the curve of your neck, groaning with need as he licked the water running steadily between you, his cock resting heavily in the crevice of your ass.

His tongue moved lazily from your neck to your back, and as he continued his slippery journey, you felt your mind drifting into the hazy passion that stripped away any anxieties or doubts you may have about the nature of your relationship with another man…this man…Jack.

As you felt his hand gently grasp your chin and pull your head back against his shoulder, you sputtered slightly as the water hit your face full on, but he covered your lips with his, forcing his tongue inside your mouth, and creating a seal that kept the water out, but stole your breath nonetheless.

You broke away from his kiss with a gasp when you felt his fingers start to open you up, and you tensed instinctively for a moment as your muscles adjusted to the intrusion, but when he found the special place inside you that was his alone, you relaxed and pushed back against his hand. He soothed you with nonsense words and comforting circles he rubbed into your stomach with his other hand, and when he felt you move restlessly against him, he pulled his fingers free, and replaced them with his cock.

He continued to mutter softly into your hair, as he slowly slid in deeper, until you felt his balls snug up against your ass, and you sighed, loving the way he filled you so completely, pushing all thoughts of your lonely life out of your mind as he began to fuck you, slow and sweet.

The sound of the trickling water surrounded you, and the feel of its gentle splashing covered you both, while it heightened every nerve ending in your body. You moaned constantly as the intensity of your pleasure rose as he grabbed you firmly across your chest with one arm, while beginning to pound steadily into your ass as you felt your orgasm building with no stimulation to your own cock needed.

“C’mon Ennis!” he growled in your ear, pushing both of you further into the path of the waterfall’s cascade, “Come for me…with me!” and as you exploded together, there beneath the healing spray of the clean mountain water, you thought you heard him whisper, “She can’t give ya that.”, but your heartbeat was pounding like a drum in your ears, and when you turned to face him, to ask him what he’d said, he brushed your dripping hair off your brow, and stuck his tongue in your mouth once more. Suddenly, you didn’t give a shit what he’d said as long as he just kept kissing you.

#####

Now, standing lost in your thoughts, alone before the waterfall, you frowned as you realized that your ears had not deceived you that day, and that you had discovered the truth in his statement on many occasions after that.

You had promised yourself to Alma long before you had ever met Jack Twist, and while you were sure that your place was with him and not with her, you’d done some hard thinking on your solitary nights on the mountain, and you’d decided that she deserved more than to be abandoned by you. You knew damn well how that felt and it wasn’t Alma’s fault that you’d changed your mind. So when you left Signal, you were going to take a slight detour into Riverton, to make a clean break with Alma. She was a sweet girl, and should have no trouble finding someone more suitable to her needs than you would be. You weren’t about to go into details, you weren’t a fool, and the chances of her finding out about you and Jack were slim indeed. Yeah, Jack would be pissed that you didn’t come straight to his uncle’s ranch, but what difference would a few days make, when you would be able to go to him with a clear conscience?

You missed him so much you could hardly stand it, and not a moment went by that you didn’t wish he were here by your side. But sometimes a man’s got to do what’s right, no matter how hard it might be. You knew he would understand…after all, you’d chosen him over Alma…and nothing could change that.


	7. Somewhere We Belong

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We catch up to what Jack is getting up to on the farm he's inherited from his uncle.

You head toward the stables and smile as you realize that you are whistling. You laugh out loud as you recognize the tune running through your mind as one of the many songs you tortured Ennis with up on the mountain. He was always ragging on you when you burst into song or whipped out your harmonica like you were a virtuoso classical musician playing to an adoring audience, but secretly you think he found it amusing, and not tiresome at all.

Truth be told, you knew you sang off key, and that your harmonica playing was for shit, but it was one of the first things that you did that made him laugh. And once you made him smile, you did everything in your power to keep him happy and intrigued by whatever you were doing. It was an awful lot like when a fellow decided to court a sweetheart, it was just that your sweetheart was another fellow.

Your whistling dries up as you feel the crisp snap in the early morning air, and you frown as you think about how much colder it must be getting up on Brokeback by now. You try your best to keep track of the mountain weather, but your old radio works sporadically at best, so reports have been sketchy, and you’re starting to feel anxious about how Ennis is faring all alone up there. 

You’ve been working non-stop since you arrived at your uncle’s ranch, but Ennis is always there, watching you from the fringes of your consciousness. You may be bleary eyed and half dead from the relentless demands of the ranch, but thoughts of the future you are building for the both of you keeps you sane.

Hell, most nights you’ve passed out in your bed in a stupor from putting in sixteen hour days of hard labor, too tired to even wring it out thinking on him. But although your exhaustion causes you to sleep like the dead, every so often you awaken sticky and wet, with his name on your lips and thoughts of his hand stroking your hardened cock. Those are the mornings that you lie in bed for an extra five minutes, telling him what’s in your heart, missing him more than you could ever admit to his face, shedding just a few tears of loneliness as the summer seems to drag on forever.

Your uncle is clinging to life, and it’s a miracle that he’s still alive, but with each passing day hope fades that he will recover. Your Mama stops by several times a week to bring you food, and wash your clothes, and you know your Daddy must be fit to be tied. But this ranch was her childhood home, and since she will own the other half with you when your uncle has passed, John Twist holds his peace for the time being. He has no power over you here, and you are determined to keep it that way.

Your Daddy may be a miserable son-of-a-bitch, but he’s not stupid, and if any profit is made from your blood and sweat…well, that will make it all the sweeter for him, when the time comes to collect his share. You’ve already decided that your Daddy is greedy enough not to kill his cash cow, and you’re counting on him to look the other way as far as you and Ennis are concerned.

You’re grateful for the days your Mama is there because like every good ranch woman, she’s not afraid to get her hands dirty and toil alongside you. On those days, you tell her stories from your summer on Brokeback and she listens to you intently, a sad, soft smile on her face as she hears countless references to one Ennis Del Mar.

Finally, she turns to you and places her careworn hand on your cheek, her pale and tired blue eyes smiling into yours. “Well son, it certainly sounds like this Ennis Del Mar has the makings of a true, lifelong friend. Ya make sure ya don’t lose track of him…you’ll learn that a real friend is a rare thing to find in this world.”

You lean into her caress, eager to make her understand. “Mama, he’s agreed to come here after he’s done on Brokeback. I asked him to stay here and help me run this ranch. He comes from ranch folk ya know, and together we’re gonna make this the best goddamned ranch in all of Wyoming.”

“Oh Jack,” she sighs, “Ya know all I want is for ya to be happy, son…but please…promise me you’ll be careful. Gossip and rumor can be a deadly thing, especially as the years go by.”

You swallowed past the sudden lump in your throat, recognizing the truth in her words, the image of Joe Aguirre’s hate filled glare flashing before your now anxious eyes. You’d promised to keep Ennis safe, you’d given him your word, and no force on this earth was going to make you break that vow. No one had ever come through for that boy in his whole fucking life, and you were determined to break that cycle…no matter what.

“Don’t worry, Mama,” you lie smoothly, eager to remove the frown from her face, “We got it all figured out. It’s nobody’s business but ours how we choose to run this ranch.” Your eyes slide off to the side unable to meet her gaze straight on, but you give her your trademark bright smile, and bend in to gently kiss her cheek. “You’ll see… it’ll work out just fine.”

She drops the subject and pulls you into a warm, comforting hug, and you feel some of the stress leave your body at the thought that at least one person will accept you and Ennis without censure.

Now, a few days after your conversation, as you’re mucking out the stables, you see her approaching, a slight tenseness in her posture catching your attention and causing you to straighten up in sudden fear.

“Mama!” You call out to her as you notice the tears streaking down her face, “What’s wrong?” Your mind is racing and you just know she’s coming to tell you that something horrible has happened to Ennis. You send off a silent plea, “Oh God, please don’t take him from me!”

You meet up with your Mama and grab her hands, your eyes desperately searching her face for a clue, your heart frozen in your chest. “Oh Jack!” she grips your hands tightly and meets your eyes with a watery gaze, “He’s gone, son. He’s finally at peace in Jesus’ arms. His suffering is over.”

For one endless second, you forget how to breathe, then with a sudden merciful flash of insight, you realize it is your uncle who has passed, and you flinch slightly as your brain is flooded with equal parts of elation and guilt. You pull her into a crushing hug, and the tears in your eyes, while mourning your uncle’s death, are also tears of relief that the bad news didn’t have Ennis’ name on it this time.

You comfort your Mama as a good son should, and spend the next few days trying to survive the flurry of activity that surrounds the burial of a loved one, while still tending to your now inherited ranch.

Your Daddy sticks his nose into your business just far enough for you want to punch his lights out, and after a few snide remarks and pointed comments, he spits near your feet telling you not to fuck things up. Then he skulks back to his homestead, which is half the size of yours and a poor excuse for a ranch on its best day, and you find yourself muttering, “Good Riddance,” as the dust kicks up behind his rust heap of a pick up as he drives away.

You turn your attention once again to the mountains, and your gut instinct tells you that the time is near for the order to be given to bring the sheep down. The morning frost has become a daily sight, and the days are beginning to shorten just enough to proclaim that a change of season is imminent.

You had told him you would wait, and that he should call you if his convictions should start to fail, but the reality of loving Ennis Del Mar is the acceptance that old habits are hard for him to break. Your addiction to him had only grown stronger during your time apart, but you fear your absence has only allowed the demons in his brain to grab hold and replace you in his thoughts as a fond but forbidden memory.

You try but fail to chalk your fears off to simple paranoia, and so you decide that you would head to Signal just as soon as you could make arrangements for some extra help on the ranch. Fortunately, although the labor was intense, you were by no means alone in handling your inheritance. Your uncle had employed several capable ranch hands and a foreman, all of whom were past their prime, but were loyal to the ranch, and would be able to take care of daily operations for a few more days, while you went off and lassoed your man.

You promised them that upon your return you would have a partner in tow, and between the two of you, things would change for the better, and the ranch would soon be thriving enough that you could bring on more hands to make their jobs easier. You might be talking out of your ass for all you knew, but at least you did it convincingly, and with a friendly smile to boot.

You packed a duffle bag and planned on setting off at dawn, which would put you in Signal mid-afternoon and give you time to discreetly find out if the word had been given yet. You had no intention of confronting Aguirre again, at least not until Ennis was safely in your line of sight, and out of the line of fire.

You stretched out on the bed and yawned, hoping that tonight sleep would claim you quickly, but it soon became apparent that thoughts of your upcoming reunion with Ennis had you excited…and horny.

Letting out a deep sigh, you pictured Ennis in your mind, his fine naked self kneeling next to you on the bed, his hot glance causing your breath to quicken. Just the thought of you together…on a goddamn real bed, was enough to make you bite your bottom lip and moan loudly. Thank God your Mama wasn’t here tonight.

You languidly reach between your legs and stroke sensually at your erection, imagining the dark lustful expression on his face as he slaps your hand away playfully and gently touchs one rough finger along your dripping slit. Your hips arch off the bed and you hiss, your actions mimicking those of your fantasy lover. If you keep your eyes tightly closed, you can hear his soft laugh as he wraps his fingers around your cock, his palm wet where he has slicked it with his spit, the friction sending currents of electricity dancing up and down your spine.

You moan his name again and this time you thrust wantonly through the tunnel of his fingers, your steadily weeping cock throbbing and silky skin tightening in a way that should be painful…but instead blends perfectly into pleasure. You feel him take his other hand and slide it from your stomach to your nipples, and you gasp as he pinches and twists the nubs, the mix of sensations causing your brain to short circuit, and you curse loudly as his rhythmic stroking increases in speed and intensity.

You feel his hand leave your chest and his fingers ghost against your lips, forcing them open, and you respond by hungrily sucking and licking until they are dripping wet and ready to breach your hole.

“Fuck me,” you whisper to the phantom in your bed and you tease your hole with one finger, panting as you slide it in as deeply as you can before removing it quickly and adding another. You bring yourself swiftly to the edge when you remember how much Ennis likes to watch you fuck yourself on your own fingers, his eyes burning with desire, ready to pounce on you as soon as you start to shoot.

“Here I come, Ennis,” you shout now as the image of him naked and watching you hungrily sends you plunging headlong into the best orgasm you’ve had since you’ve been apart.

“This is all for you, boy.” You huff out a breathless sigh as you rub your hands through the come pooled on your stomach, knowing that if he were here, he’d be licking at your essence and pressing some from his tongue to yours. Yeah, Ennis was a shy one, but he was always shocking you…in a good way…by the nasty and kinky things he was willing to try…and enjoy.

You were now more eager than ever to see him again, and after stumbling to the bathroom to wash up, you stared at the man reflected back at you in the mirror. Your face was flushed, and your eyes were tired, but you looked relaxed, and you wondered once again if he was okay. More importantly, how would he be after you got him home? And the most vital question of all….how the hell would you get him to stay?

Your jaw was set in a way your Mama liked to compare to a stubborn mule, and you were honest enough to admit that getting him here was not even half the battle. But those were all problems to be tackled on another day. For tonight, you needed to catch some sleep, and focus on collecting that man of yours and getting the both of you safely out of Signal and back here….somewhere you belonged...together.

As you lay back down your eyes grew heavy, and you felt yourself beginning to drift into a peaceful twilight realm between sleep and awareness. You clung to your feelings of love for Ennis and how lucky you were to have such a handsome, hard-working, honest man to call your own….but wait. You pulled yourself up from your blissful dreams with a start. Your mind was swimming with images of Ennis and his strong work ethic, and his stronger convictions. Ennis, who lived primarily in a black and white world where shades of grey didn’t exist, was that rare soul who believed in striving to do the right thing, no matter what.

So you realize far too late that there was one variable you hadn’t taken into consideration when you elicited Ennis’ promise to come to you before you had left the mountain. Yes, he had promised to be with you, but he had never agreed not to take any detours along the way. Your perfect plan had one big fucking flaw…and her name was Alma Beers. You gave up on getting any fucking sleep, and grabbed your duffle bag. You would be in Signal before the sun rose.


	8. Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ennis heads down the mountain and finds a surprise waiting for him at the bottom.

You take a last glance around the now barren camp site and let out a satisfied sigh. Everything has been gathered up and loaded onto the pack mules. Aguirre had sent a group of his hired men to begin the tiresome process of bringing the sheep down the mountain, so your job was as good as done now.

Your gaze falls to the cold, ash-filled fire pit and you feel a gentle smile broaden your face at the memories of you and Jack around what was then an eternally burning circle of flame.

Jack. Passing you the whiskey bottle, cocky smile on his face in the early days, blue eyes smoldering with desire as the summer progressed.

Jack. Falling on his ass drunk and telling another one of his tall tales trying to get you to laugh, and usually succeeding.

Jack. Dragging you onto his lap and kissing you breathless, his passion sparking yours and making you forget that you should protest and tell him that you weren’t no girl to be sitting in a boy’s lap.

Jack. Naked and spread before you in the fire’s amber glow, legs embracing your shoulders, pulling you so deeply inside him you swore you became one person.

Jack. Promising to wait for you, to make a commitment to you, even though he knows you don’t share his optimism for making that sweet life a reality.

You turn away from the empty camp and mount your horse, knowing that the answers you seek can no longer be found here on the mountain. It’s time for you to move on, do right by Alma, and then take the road less traveled, the one that will lead you to Jack.

It’s slow going, you leading the pack mules down the mountain path, sometimes slowing to a crawl at the steepest points on the trail. You suppress a shudder when you reach the spot where you surprised that goddamn big bear coming back from a supply run early in the summer.

You spend the better part of the day, almost into evening, working your way steadily toward the bridge, toward the jump off point, toward a new beginning and a place you can finally call home.  
When you reach the rendezvous point, you turn the mules over to the waiting Basque, and lean against the truck for a smoke, trying to quiet the tendrils of anxiety beginning to twist in your gut now that your final step toward civilization was about to begin.

You take several slow and deep breaths and close your eyes pretending that Jack is beside you, stroking your arm and whispering promises about the future, like he did so many nights on the mountain. He never lost his patience when the demons from your childhood reared their ugly heads and caused you to panic and lash out at him and the deviant sexual acts you engaged in. As fucked up as you were…are….it amazes you that he still wants you to be his partner…both in business and in life.

You climb into the truck and doze for the remainder of the trip into Signal. You wake with a start when you feel a hand gently squeeze your thigh, and quickly turn to the left, ready to punch the Basque driver in his fucking mouth for feeling you up like you were some sort of queer.

Your muscles freeze as you see Jack’s smiling face peering across the cab at you in the dim pre-dawn light, and you know you have an equally stupid matching grin plastered on your own face.

“Jack?” your voice cracks in disbelief as the hand on your thigh moves up a few more teasing inches until it hovers over your very interested cock. “What the hell ya doing here, bud?”

“Why I’m giving you a private welcome home party, Ennis. Ain’t ya happy to see me?” and somehow the truck is parked and he’s closed the distance between you and before you can wonder what the fuck is going on, he’s captured your mouth in a lip crushing kiss, full of teeth and tongue, and your head spins as you taste him for the first time in weeks. You grab his face between your hands roughly, and return his kiss with all the force you can muster, all the love you feel for him from the deepest part of your heart pouring out of you and into him all in one giant wave.

He moans into your mouth and his hands have loosened your shirt and worked their way warmly onto your chest, where he smooths his palms in circles from your abdomen to your nipples, and you arch into his body, shuddering as he opens your shirt and rubs his hard muscles against yours.

You grab his biceps and squeeze tightly, grunting with approval at the larger girth that is a testament to his tough new life; running his own ranch. He laughs and nuzzles your neck deeply, his hand wandering from your stomach to the fly of your jeans. He makes quick work of the zipper and you breathe out his name as his rough palm encircles your cock and starts to stroke.

“Ennis,” he bites his way from your neck to your shoulder and then back, “I’ve missed ya so much boy, so fucking much!”

He pushes you back against the door and ruts his body into yours frantically. You open your mouth to tell him you missed him too, but instead a groan escapes as he presses your cocks together and begins a slow, firm stroking that makes you dizzy with need and ready to shoot.

“Love ya Ennis,” he murmurs against your panting lips. “Let me fuck ya, right here, right now.”

You let out a sudden yelp of pain as your head hits the side window, and just like that, you’re awake and painfully aware that you’re not with Jack after all…at least not yet.

You clear your throat and rub your eyes, and you watch the sun start to peek out over the rim of the mountains. You feel suddenly lighter, and you realize that soon you will be able to count the hours until you and Jack are reunited. You want to whistle or hum, but somehow you control yourself and simply sit there and grin.

A few minutes later and you eagerly jump out of the truck as it stops in front of Aguirre’s trailer, and you can’t believe how much you have changed from the lonely, shy boy you were before Jack Twist barreled into your life.

You head toward the trailer steps, eager to collect your pay and be on your merry way, when you hear someone call your name from behind you. You whirl around in disbelief and you find yourself with an armful of a petite brown-haired girl, who buries her face in your chest with a giggle, and holds you tightly around the waist.

“Alma?” you utter her name in shock and surprise. “How…what are ya doing here?”

“My Daddy brought me, Ennis,” she laughs and gazesup at you, adoration gleaming softly in her eyes. “Mr. Aguirre was kind enough to call us to let us know ya were coming down, so we came to give ya a ride home. I missed ya so much, I think I must of drove him crazy, so here we are.”

“Alma.” you repeated stupidly before your face broke out in a relieved smile. Now you weren’t going to have to travel to the other side of the state to tell her your plans, now you could be with Jack that much sooner.You hugged her tightly back and swung her around, your eyes closed, a smile still lighting up your face.

You finally opened you eyes again when you heard Aguirre’s smug voice from the office door. “Well now, ain’t that a pretty sight there Mr. Beers? Two young lovers reunited after a long summer apart.”

You stare at him suspiciously, trying to reconcile the almost jovial man before you with the sour bastard he’d been every other time you’d seen him.

Suddenly, from behind you, there is a loud squealing of tires and as you instinctively spin around to investigate the source of the noise that has shattered the peaceful dawn, you feel an icy hand squeeze your heart and steal your breath.

For there, within a spreading cloud of dust was the biggest,yet sadly familiar, piece of shit pickup truck you’d ever laid eyes on, and behind the wheel, the back of his head getting more indistinct as the distance between you grew, was Jack Fucking Twist.


	9. Eye of the Beholder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jack tries to understand just how things could have gone so wrong.

The tears are running down your cheeks in a scalding trail and your vision is so blurred you’re surprised you’ve managed to stay on the road at all. You glance into your side mirror and laugh bitterly as you imagine you can see Ennis running after you through the cloud of dust that still lingers from your angry acceleration away from the place where you watched your life turn to shit.

You cursed yourself and your stupid vision of having a happily ever after with Ennis…with any-fucking-one. It was obvious to you that he had never felt the same way you did about him. You saw him as the missing part of your soul, the piece of your life that you had always been seeking; the reason you were always restless and never satisfied with the hand that fate had dealt you.

You catch yourself sobbing and clamp your teeth shut to hold in the whimpers. How much more of a pussy could you possibly be? Why would Ennis want you, when he could have that armful of a pretty little girl whenever he wanted? No one would ever spit on them, or call them an abomination. She could give him beautiful daughters and strong, handsome sons. All you had to offer was a struggling ranch and a life of caution and fear. You must look so pathetic when he compared you to Alma.

Alma. You fucking hated that name now. It wasn’t supposed to be this way; not at all. She was the one who should be crying, broken-hearted and alone, jilted by the man who belonged to you, Goddamnit!

You finally pull over on the side of a lonely country road and press your head down onto the steering wheel, relishing the feel of the cold, unforgiving metal digging into your forehead, hating the tears that drip steadily down your face and onto your lap. You hear a strange sound that reminds you of those fucking sheep bleating away on the mountain, and you hiccup as you realize those pitiful noises came from your own throat.

“Stop it!” your voice cracks and you wish you could go back to those carefree days on Brokeback, to a time when it looked like you were going to finally get your heart’s desire. You close your bloodshot, tear-swollen eyes, and run your hands through your hair in frustration. Your mind begins to wander, and suddenly you’re lying in a field of wildflowers, laughing at the way Ennis is frowning at you because you’re naked as the day you were born.

”What the hell is wrong with you, Jack Twist?” You laugh harder, because now Ennis’s face is flushed with embarrassment and something darkly exciting, as he is desperately trying to pretend he’s not sneaking a lustful glance or two in your direction.

You let your tongue slowly travel from one side of your mouth to the other, and when you know he’s watching you from the corner of his eyes, you roll over and pillow your head on your crossed hands, flexing your ass muscles as you make a show out of getting comfortable on the plaid horse blanket you’d tossed on the ground, carelessly crushing the flowers that bloomed there.

“Ahhhh…it’s a wonderful life!” you sigh as the soothing sunlight caresses your back, and you gasp in pleasure as a warm hand suddenly lies flat against your buttocks, before lightly dancing its way up to your shoulder blades and back down to the crack of your ass.

“Mmmmm…” you shudder as you hear a deep humming sound dangerously close to your ear, followed by a lazy tongue tracing a path that leads from your neck to your shoulder. “You’re beautiful.” The words are whispered so quietly you decide you must have imagined them. No way would Ennis Del Mar be calling you beautiful, yet you can’t help the satisfied smile that breezes across your face, because you know he wants you…and you always want him.

You roll onto your side and cradle his cheeks in the palm of your hands, claiming his lips in a rough kiss that is full of tongue and teeth and longing. You grunt as his large hand closes firmly over your hard cock, squirming as his calloused palms begin to stroke teasingly up…and down…and all around your length. He slides his fingertip across your damp and leaking cockhead, and you arch up, nuzzling hungrily into the sweaty musk of his neck, teeth nipping desperately at his skin, until you hear him growl, prompting you to smooth your tongue soothingly over the now tender marks.

You beg him to fuck you with his clothes on, nothing exposed except his long, thick cock, which swells as you watch him slip it past his open fly, your mouth watering, and your hole pulsing at the thought of being breeched by its generous girth. You moan as he pushes his cock slowly inside of you with nothing but spit to ease the way. It was always this frantic coupling between you; a moment of exquisite pain, followed by mind-numbing pleasure that always forged a tighter bond…an unbreakable connection.

You caught your breath and sat up straight. “An unbreakable connection?” you whispered the words into the stillness of the truck cab, wondering for the first time since you saw him holding Alma in his arms if perhaps you’d just made a huge mistake. Your mind wandered again to that day in the meadow, this time with more purpose as you struggled to remember the conversation you had with Ennis afterwards, when you were lying sated in each other’s arms.

”What the fuck are we doing, Jack?” The words vibrate against your temple as he rests his lips there, softly. You are lying in his lap, but he is leaning over you protectively…possessively.

You hum contentedly and reach around to grab the back of his head, keeping him as close as you can for as long as you can. “I don’t know about you, friend, but I am planning on taking a nap, and then having my wicked way with you the next round.” You leer at him suggestively, but you instantly sober at his unhappy expression. You stroke his hair soothingly and pull his head down onto your chest, sighing as you try to find the right words that will set his guilt-ridden and anxious mind to rest.

“What we are doing here, Ennis Del Mar,” you speak slowly, chin resting on his hair, breath softly ruffling his curls. “is getting to know each other, enjoying this time we have together just us two, and maybe coming away from this summer with something so fucking special, you won’t ever want to let me out of your sight.”

“It’s gonna be hard, Jack. I don’t know if I can handle it…other people knowing about us…what we do.” His voice was muffled against your chest, his breath hot and steamy, making you shiver.

“Ennis, please…please trust me. I promise you that I will take care of everything…no one will have to know about us, not unless we tell them. Just give me a chance…give us a chance…please Ennis.”

You stayed like that, tightly bound together for the rest of that midsummer afternoon, neither of you willing to release the other to the world and the challenges you would face if you decided to try to make this thing between you more than just a summer of fucking.

And you had eventually gotten that promise from Ennis. Not that day in the meadow, not until much later and with much more convincing from you, but he had agreed to give it a chance, to try to turn it into more than just a one shot thing after all.

You bite your lip, and suddenly feel like a cold winter wind was blowing through the truck. Ennis had promised that he would come to you after he was done on the mountain. He had promised that he would at least try to make a life with you. You had pushed him hard for that promise, and had made him believe that you belonged together…had a fucking shot at a good life together.

And then, you had gone and jumped to a conclusion this morning when you saw him holding Alma in his arms. You had taken off like a rocket ship aimed at the moon, without even giving him a chance to explain.

Maybe the explanation was that he had changed his mind, and was going to try to live his idea of a normal life with Alma…a wife and kids and neighbors inviting them over for cook-outs. But, maybe you were wrong, and had run off without giving him the chance to break your heart in person.

How the hell had Alma known when Ennis would be done on the mountain anyways? You look at your reflection in the rearview mirror, expression grim, yet with a glimmer of hope just simmering there in the back of your eyes. It was the hope you felt at the slight possibility that maybe you were wrong about what you had stumbled upon back in Signal. Whatever the outcome, you owed it to Ennis, and yourself, to at least face each other like men….like lovers.

You put the truck into gear and make a U-turn so fast the dust flies up and you are engulfed in a dark cloud for a long moment, before slamming your foot onto the accelerator and speeding back towards Signal…and him.


	10. Into Your Arms

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ennis talks to Alma about their future, even though his thoughts are only on Jack.

You gently push Alma away and instinctively take several steps in the direction taken by Jack’s truck, already less than a speck on the horizon.

You wonder how things could have gone so wrong, and you realize three people are watching you aimlessly stumble across the parking lot. 

“Ennis?” you hear Alma’s soft voice and feel her hand tentatively touch your arm as she moves to stand next to you. Her eyes meet yours and her confused expression instantly turns to that of concern, and you turn to her and grasp her hands tightly in both of yours. 

“Alma,” you clear your throat and try again when your voice cracks pitifully. “Alma, we need to talk.” 

You spare a cautious glance towards her Daddy, who is watching quietly from Joe Aguirre’s side. His attitude is calm although curious, and he nods in permission when you raise your eyebrows and start to move Alma away from Aguirre’s sneering face. Your blood runs cold as you realize Joe must know about you and Jack. You have a sudden vision of Jack on his knees, surrounded by Aguirre and his good buddies, each taking turns with baseball bats and tire irons intent on ruining his beautiful face and shutting those blue eyes forever.

You close your own eyes and shudder, and you must have made some sort of moaning sound, because you feel Alma’s fingers tighten on yours, and suddenly she is the one pulling you further away from Joe’s shitty trailer, making sure you can’t be seen or overheard by the other two men. 

You look down at her worried face and for just a moment you are tempted to forget all about any promises you made to Jack up on that lonely mountain in the heat of the summer. You could be happy with Alma. You were happy planning a future with Alma before you met Jack…before you gave in to a moment’s weakness and loneliness, and let unnatural thoughts become unnatural acts. Maybe you just got confused, and since Jack was always there, waiting and watching, you let him convince you that two men could be just as happy as a man and a woman. 

You cup her face gently, and her lips part sweetly as you bend your head and kiss her. Her lips are soft and yield to the light pressure of yours, her skin beneath your lightly stroking fingers is smooth and supple. She makes a small noise in the back of her throat and she delicately presses her hand against the nape of your neck. It’s the perfect kiss with the perfect woman, and everything about it is perfectly wrong. 

The lips you want to feel are chapped and bruising in their quest to dominate your mouth with teeth and tongue. The skin you want beneath your wandering fingers is rough as sandpaper, full of shadows and stubble. Strong hands that tangle in your hair, and firmly force your head back, baring your neck to a mouth that will mark you and claim you as his…has already claimed you time and again in the quiet solitude you found together on the mountain.

You slowly pull away from her, waiting for her eyes to open, bracing yourself for the disappointment that will cross her face when you tell her you’re not the man for her.

“Alma.” You say her name quietly, and her gaze finds yours, immediately recognizing that you’ve just shared your last kiss. “I’m sorry.”

“I don’t understand.” She says simply, her hand brushing against your cheek, hovering near your lips, but not touching. “What’s changed? Don’t you love me?” 

You shift your eyes away from hers because you do love her, but not the way you love Jack. You don’t want to give her the wrong idea, but you can’t chance telling her the whole story either. Fuck Aguirre for forcing your hand this way. 

“I’ve had a lot of time to think this summer.” You almost wince at how cliché you are sounding, but you soldier on bravely. “When I met you, I was feeling lost and lonely. I didn’t belong anywhere, and you and your family gave me a home and made me feel welcome.” You bite at your thumbnail nervously as Alma drops her eyes and looks sad. 

“It’s alright, Ennis. I understand if you’re not ready to settle down yet. I’m sure Daddy will let you stay with us while you find a job…” she hesitates and smiles shyly at you from under her eyelashes. “We can take things slow. I promise I won’t rush you down the aisle.”

“No, Alma.” You’re not much of a speaker at the best of times, and this sure as hell doesn’t meet that definition. “It’s more than that. I’ve got a job waiting for me…a real good opportunity as a foreman on a small ranch not far from here. Jack, the guy working on the mountain with me this summer, just inherited his uncle’s spread, and he asked me to help him run it.” She looks thoughtful, like maybe she’s going to tell you she can wait until you’re ready. 

“That’s great, Ennis. Maybe I can get a job in town, the grocery is hiring…with the two of us saving money, we can build a nest egg up in no time.” She takes a good look at your face and immediately stops making plans. “This must be so awkward for you. I guess I should have waited for you to come and tell me in person, huh?”

“I’m so sorry, Alma.” You repeat yourself, feeling like a shit for hurting her, but suddenly realizing how much worse it would be to try to live a lie by sparing her feelings now. She’d have no problem finding someone else to take care of her, make her happy in a way you knew deep down you’d never manage.

“Please believe me when I say this, because it’s not you. Any man would be proud to have you as his wife. It’s just that…” You stare down at your threadbare boots, needing her to understand, but feeling the pull inside of you to go and find Jack, and explain that you belonged in his arms when you came down that mountain…not hers. 

Alma gave him a sad, resigned smile and leaned up to kiss his stubbled cheek. “It’s just that you’re not a marrying man, are you?” 

You shake your head slowly, and pull her into a tight hug. “I’m sorry.” You whisper the words again into her hair, feel her soft body relax into yours, and you say a prayer that she has a wonderful life, one free of hardship and betrayal, with a man that treats her right.

Her breath catches in a tiny sob, but she’s dry-eyed when you release her at last. “Better to find out now than after we said ‘I do’.” She takes a few deep breaths and you watch her expression turn calm and peaceful. “No need for drama, especially in front of that Mr. Aguirre. He seems like a real bastard.” 

You choke out a surprised laugh and follow her back to the trailer where her Daddy and Joe are awkwardly waiting. 

“Come on Daddy, there’s been a slight change of plans. Ennis won’t be coming back with us today.” She’s all business, and Mr. Beers shoots Ennis a questioning glance, but follows behind his daughter, trusting he’ll get the story on the long drive home. 

She hesitates for a moment, and suddenly turns back to face you. “You gonna be okay, Ennis? You need a lift anywhere?” She shoots a suspicious glance at Joe Aguirre, who’s looking like someone just shoved him out of the catbird seat and flat onto his fat ass unexpectedly.

You give her a genuine smile of thanks, and shake your head. “No, I’m good Alma. I can find my own way.”

“Okay then.” She smiles right back at you and points her finger at you teasingly. “Send me a postcard sometime, let me know how you’re doing.”

You watch them get in their car and pull out onto the dusty road, heading in the opposite direction Jack tore off a while back, reminding you to finish up your business so you can go find him and tell him to get his head out of his ass.

You turn your attention to Joe Aguirre, standing there red-faced and sputtering, and you’d laugh at him if you weren’t so worried about how in the hell you were going to go about tracking down your man. 

“Mr. Aguirre, I need to be heading out of Signal before it gets too late in the day. I’d appreciate your giving me my wages so I can be on my way.”

Aguirre smiles nastily and spits on the ground at your feet. “Got plans, do you?”   
You glower at him, trying to use your height to full advantage, hoping he doesn’t have any more surprises in store for you today. 

“I do.” You reply evenly, consciously relaxing your hands which were struggling to ball into fists. “But they’re none of your concern.” 

“You think you’re so fucking smart, don’t you Del Mar? You and your pretty little boyfriend gonna go play house? Live happily ever after?” He heads toward his office, not waiting to see if you follow him. 

You stand just inside the office doorway, not willing to get trapped in a confined space with this ugly man who hates your guts and could decide to shoot you as soon as pay you right now.

He tosses the money envelope at your feet, and you smell the foulness of his breath as he sneers at you. “You’d best watch your back from now on, boy. Word gets around, and there are plenty of loose cannons around, not as good-natured about these things as I am. Don’t you or your piece of ass ever show your faces in Signal again. You’ve got until sundown to clear out. After that, who knows what might happen to a lone man walking down the highway after dark?”

You keep a wary eye on him as you pick up the money, icy fingers stabbing at your stomach as you hear the truth behind his words of hate. You say a prayer that Jack really did leave town, and didn’t head for a nearby bar trying to drown his sorrows. You leave without another word. Joe Aguirre is a piece of shit, and you won’t give him the satisfaction of stooping to his level and possibly pushing him into acting before you have time to leave Signal behind. 

You walk quickly down the dusty main street, feeling more nauseous with every step. What the hell kind of life were you and Jack gonna lead if people were gonna be out to kill you at every turn? What if Jack came back looking for you later and found Aguirre and his buddies liquored up and looking for trouble? How were you ever gonna find Jack and warn him? You’re suddenly overwhelmed by a vision of Jack lying in a ditch somewhere, head bashed in, wondering where you were with his dying breath. You duck into the nearest alley and puke until you’re dry heaving.

You kneel on the cold cement for a moment, trying to stave off the panic that threatens to flood your soul. You pull up an image of Jack lying in the tent naked, arms open wide in welcome as you crouch nervously at the door flap. You remember letting him pull you on top of him, both of you groaning as your bodies touched, falling safely into his arms as they wrapped around you, hearing his voice whisper in your ear, “You’re mine, Ennis Del Mar, and there ain’t nothing on this God’s green Earth that’s gonna tear us apart.”

You get shakily to your feet, bolstered by the memory of his words. Time to find your man, and start living that sweet life. You step out into the sunlight, banishing the shadows of hate into the far corners of your mind.


	11. Reunification

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jack finds Ennis and the boys have a serious talk about their future.

You slow down as you reach downtown Signal, knowing the last thing you need right now is to get pulled over by an over-zealous sheriff’s officer. With your luck it’d be someone related to Joe Aguirre or another good old boy, just itching to toss someone like you in jail for the fun of it. 

You sit up straighter as the final piece of the puzzle clicks firmly into place. _“Aguirre, you slimy scumbag.”_ You remember the last conversation you had with him, and you know without a single doubt that he’s the one who told Alma when to be there to meet Ennis. It’s just his fucked-up style; and goddamn if it didn’t almost work. 

Anxious now to get back to the trailer, worried about Ennis’s safety if Aguirre happened to spill the beans to Mr. Beers, you nervously tap your fingers on the steering wheel, and start to scan the street for any sign of your lover. 

The day has turned overcast and gray, and although it’s only late afternoon, the light is quickly fading, and a definite Autumn chill is bearing down from the mountains. A change of season is definitely well underway, and you send up a silent pray that you will get to enjoy many years of changing seasons with Ennis, if you can just find him.

The town has pretty much emptied out for the day, and even though you are driving slowly, you still almost miss him. You see a movement from the corner of your eye, coming from a darkened alley between two storefronts, and throw the transmission into park to get a better look.

There is no mistaking the tall, lanky frame that has captured your heart and libido since the moment you set eyes on him on a warm and sunny June day just a few blocks down the road from here. You smile widely and laugh out loud, so distracted by the knowledge that you’ve found him, you almost miss seeing him stumble and lean against the building, the back of his hand wiping shakily across his mouth. You know he hasn’t seen you yet, and even in your concern you are relieved to see he appears to be alone.  
You bound from the truck, and approach him quickly, pausing in confusion when you notice him flinch slightly in fear. 

“Ennis?” You stop in front of him, careful not to touch him, but leaning happily into his personal space as closely as you dare, trying to catch his scent, or feel the warmth of his body in some small way. “I am so goddamn glad to see you, friend.” You take a quick look around; the street is still abandoned, so you step in still closer, close enough for your breath to ruffle his hair when you speak. 

“What’s wrong? Are you sick?” He looks at you like you’re no longer speaking English, but somewhere deep in his eyes you see a spark of something that looks a whole lot like relief, and maybe even a smidgen of happiness. 

“Jack! Where the hell you been? And how’d you ever find me?” You’re sure that there is more than just a smidgen of happiness now, and for one brief moment you think he might grab you and shove you into the building , kissing you breathless, but instead he grabs your arm and starts pulling you back toward your truck. 

“Jack, we’ve got to get the fuck out of here now. You didn’t go looking for me at Aguirre’s did you?” You shake your head ‘no’ and let him drag you back to the street, feeling a little guilty since technically you did go looking for him at Aguirre’s, just not since this morning when you saw him with Alma. 

You don’t ask questions since he’s looking more anxious with every passing second, and you’re pretty sure that now is not the time to get into the Alma issue. As a matter of fact, you can guess that getting your collective asses out of Signal would be first priority at the moment. 

You leave town as quickly as possible without breaking any traffic laws, and feel your breath come easier as you pass the Signal City Limits sign. 

“Good fucking riddance!” you proclaim under your breath, and you shoot a hungry glance in Ennis’s direction, almost licking your lips at the sight of him sitting next to you driving down the highway toward the next phase of your life…with him. 

“You are a sight for sore eyes, boy.” You tell him, and with one eye on the road, you reach over and pull him closer to you, your arm settling across his shoulder just like it used to up on Brokeback, and for one endless second, you think he might shrug it off and retreat to the other side of the truck. But, he lets out a deep sigh, and rests his head in the crook of your neck, quietly seeming to draw strength from your touch. 

It’s been a godawful long day, and there is no way either one of you is fit to make the drive back to the ranch tonight. You ride along in comfortable silence for a while, letting the miles stretch out between you and the place that had become a threat to your very existence. 

Finally, after about thirty minutes, just when you’d convinced yourself he’d fallen asleep drooling on your shoulder, he clears his throat and shifts restlessly.

“I thought you were gone for good.” You stay quiet and wait for him to go on. “I saw you this morning…I saw you driving away in a cloud of dust, and I thought that was it, bud. No way did I think you’d come back for me.” He puts his thumb near his mouth and nibbles at his nail. 

“Yeah,” You sigh and squeeze his shoulder, bringing him in a little closer against your side. “I saw you too…you and Alma…it looked like a very fucking romantic reunion.” You’re pissed because you sound like an asshole, but you really are annoyed when you picture it in your mind. “What the hell was she doing there anyway?” 

“Fucking Aguirre.” Ennis says simply, and you grunt in agreement. “He called Alma’s Daddy and told them to come and meet me. I swear I had no idea until she launched herself at me.” 

“Fucking Aguirre.” You sulk for a moment, and then your curiosity wins out. “So I can understand you maybe hugging her back for a second, but you didn’t kiss her, did you?”  
There’s a guilty silence next to you, and you push him away to get a better look at his face. “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me, Ennis. You kissed her…on the mouth?” 

Ennis glares at you like you’ve lost your mind for a moment before answering. “Of course I kissed her Jack. We were supposed to be getting married, remember?” 

You can’t help it; you see red and your anger spills from your mouth. “Yes, I do remember she was your intended wife, but did you remember what you told me all those times I had my dick shoved up your ass this summer?” 

“Jesus Christ, Jack! You don’t got to be so graphic.” Ennis moved a little further away, and crossed his arms in annoyance. “I didn’t make out with her in front of her Daddy and Fucking Aguirre.” 

“Oh?” I raised an eyebrow and turned my attention back to the road, waiting for him to go on.

“No.” he answered defensively. “We went somewhere more private and had a little talk.” 

You slam your foot on the brake and shift roughly into ‘Park’. “Are you trying to get me to throw your ass out of this truck, and let you hitchhike your way across Wyoming?” 

“Let me finish, asshole.” He turned to face me, and poked me in the chest. “None of this…this thing between us is her fault, so it’s only fair that I broke it off with her alone. I owe her that much for wasting her summer waiting for me.” 

You know what he says is true, but you still don’t see where a kiss came into that picture. “What about the kiss?” 

He has the good sense to look ashamed at this point of the story, and your temper starts to cool as he struggles with his explanation. “It was kind of a test for me. I really needed to be sure that there was nothing left between us. I probably shouldn’t have done it, but if we’re going to move forward with a life together, I needed to be certain. There’s a lot at fucking stake with what we’ve decided we want to do, you know?” 

You look at him suspiciously, but you know you’ve already forgiven him, even if he was a stupid, frustrating shit sometimes. “And?” 

He shoots you that rare smile of his, and you melt into a puddle right there on the front seat of your truck. He leans in and slides his hand around the back of your neck, and presses a hesitant kiss to your lips. You resist for a heartbeat, but then the familiar tingles start in your stomach, and you open your mouth in forgiveness, letting your tongue caress his, before he pulls back. “And I realized that nothing compares to your bad breath and stubble, bud.”

You laugh and grab him by the chin. “Well, I hope you enjoyed it, because that’s the last pair of lips you’re kissing other than mine, Casanova!” You push your tongue into his mouth with a quiet growl, letting him know you are officially re-staking your claim. He lets you crowd him against the passenger side door, where lips begin to travel, and hands begin to caress, until headlights in the distance pull you back to reality. 

You smile when you glance over and see him struggling to regain some composure, and you can’t resist. “Hold that thought, boy. We’ll take up where we left off just a few more miles up the road.” He starts to glare, but the lustful look in your eyes has him changing his tune, and soon his hand is resting comfortably on your thigh as you peer through the windshield, eyes searching eagerly for motel lights on the horizon. 

“Where you planning on stopping?” He sounds more curious than worried for the moment, and you take that as a sign that he thinks you may be far enough away from Signal to relax. You highly doubt Aguirre or his boys will bother to chase you across the state. You’re also pretty sure neither one of you will be setting foot willingly back in that neck of the woods anytime in your natural life.

“Motel up ahead, right off the Interstate. It’s kind of a dive, but neither one of us is in any shape to be driving all night.” You cover his hand still resting on your thigh and squeeze it firmly, smiling as you see him settle back in the seat, and shut his eyes. 

“Mmmm.” He mumbles sleepily, hat sliding down over his eyes as he tilts his head back against the window. 

You drive in silence, and you think he may have drifted off by the time you finally pull into the parking lot of the **Sweet Dreams Motor Lodge**. But, he sits up straight as soon as he feels you shake his shoulder lightly, and looks at you a little apprehensively as you turn the engine off. 

“What’s wrong?” you ask him, knowing that expression means he’s worried about something.

“We can’t just go in there and rent a room together.” He shakes his head firmly. “No way.” 

You sigh and chase his fingers that have started to slide off your leg, gripping them and pulling his focus back to you. “It’s alright, Ennis. We’ll rent two rooms near each other, and only use one.” You wink suggestively as you finish speaking, and he looks like he’s trying to decide if he should be angry or laugh. 

He settles for a snort, and nods his agreement to your idea. “Okay, but you’re the one doing the sneaking into my room.” 

You roll your eyes and gesture to the office with your head. “It’s a deal, friend. Now, don’t act nervous or guilty. This is a motel, they’re used to people renting rooms from them.”

You hold your laughter and feel his eyes boring into the back of your head as you enter the office. The desk clerk is clearly bored with his job, and barely glances up as he checks you in and gives you each a key. Ennis does a fine job of appearing calm, but you notice he’s chewing on his thumbnail by the time you leave. 

“We probably could have asked to rent the honeymoon suite and that guy wouldn’t have given a shit!” You chuckle at your own bad joke, and Ennis remains quiet, but he makes it a point to bump up against you as you unlock his side of the truck, the heat of his body sending a shock wave straight to your dick. 

Suddenly, you’re finding it difficult to breathe. All you can think of is how long it’s been since you’ve fucked him, and that you almost gave up on him this morning instead of demanding an explanation. You still aren’t pleased with what happened, but at least he had been honest and found out for himself that what you had together wasn’t just a by-product of the loneliness of the situation. 

It could have been so much worse in so many ways. Alma could have been vindictive, and encouraged her Daddy and Aguirre to punish Ennis for being a queer. You could have walked into an ambush when you came looking for Ennis. There were so many horrible things that could have happened, it was almost a miracle that you were finally standing together, ready to take everything one step further and share a life outside of the isolation on Brokeback.

“Jack.” You’re startled by the sound of his voice, and you hear the concern in his tone. “You okay?”

You give him a sincere smile and nod your head. “I am now.”


	12. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jack and Ennis begin to live their sweet life.

You follow him to the door of his room, and shove his arm when he makes to shoo you off to your own room. You may have agreed to rent two rooms, but as deserted as this place is, there is no way you’re even going to bother setting foot in it. 

“Open the damn door, Ennis!” You whisper in his ear, satisfied at the almost imperceptible shudder that runs through his body. “There is no one around to see us, and I have waited about as long as I can to reacquaint myself with certain parts of your fine anatomy.” 

He drops his keys and you laugh at the expression on his face when he bends over to pick them up. You know what he’s thinking and he’s absolutely right. The only thing stopping you from grabbing his ass at that point is the knowledge that someone may be watching from one of the curtained windows surrounding you. 

He finally succeeds in opening the door, and you slip in close behind him. You help him shut the door by slamming him face first against it. He curses and twists himself around, push-walking you across the room, where you land with a grunt on the opposite wall, and he presses in tightly against your body, dry humping his hard cock next to yours, mouth hovering a hairsbreadth away from your own parted lips. 

“Quit stalling!” you rasp impatiently, taking the initiative and roughly thrusting your tongue deep inside his mouth, heedless of saliva dripping, and the need for oxygen. You want to climb inside him through whatever means you can, and from the sounds coming from deep within his chest, it is a mutual desire. 

You continue the assault on his lips, a part of you needing to reclaim every inch of him, especially the mouth that touched another’s today, even if it was for the purpose of comparison, and he assured you her lips lit no flame inside of him. 

He lets you control the kiss, accepting his punishment even as white hot pleasure explodes within, his hips grinding against yours desperately, until you drop to your knees and free his cock almost roughly from his jeans. 

You growl hungrily as you take his shaft deeply within your mouth, wanting to devour him, and savor him at the same time. 

You push his pants down past his knees and push his thighs further apart, reaching for the soft skin of his heavy balls as you continue to suck his cock eagerly. 

You massage his balls and hum in pleasure as you feel them start to tighten, pulling off quickly before he has a chance to shoot his load down your throat. 

He moans in disappointment until you stick two fingers in his mouth, whispering to him to get them nice and wet. He shifts his weight as he licks and sucks noisily until you pull the digits free and urge him to face the wall.

He presses his palms against the cheap, peeling wallpaper, kicking his pants from around his ankles, pushing his ass out to meet your hand with your moist fingers seeking out the tight heat of his hole impatiently. 

You slide them inside slowly, pain not being the name of the game tonight. You feel a euphoric moment of immense satisfaction as he grunts and pants, struggling to open for you. It’s been a while, and you know he is as eager to be fucked as you are to feel the smooth embrace of his sphincter muscles squeezing your dick firmly to your own completion.

Lost to the anticipation, you remove your fingers and guide yourself to his entrance, his murmured encouragement music to your ears, which have been missing the sound of the husky and dark tones his voice acquires only for you…only at times like this. You take a deep breath and remain perfectly still, halfway to heaven and yet far too close to plummeting from the dizzying heights you visit together, joined as one.

Sparing one last bitter thought to the image of his lips pressing to Alma’s is enough to allow you to regain control of your wayward cock. You quickly find your rhythm, hard and fast, hips snapping against his, right arm clasping his waist possessively, left hand tangled in his hair, pulling his neck back to bare his throat to your not so gentle love bites. He pushes off from the wall to give you better access, welcoming your marks with every shuddering breath he draws. 

You take what he is offering because there is no other way to put this behind you and start fresh without his surrender, his acknowledgment that there will be no future experiments or doubts to cloud your inevitable and complete commitment to each other.

It is the final piece of the covenant that you made to each other on the lonely mountain that took the fragments of your separate fucked up lives and somehow melded them together in a still imperfect yet now unbreakable bond.

You whisper words of your love fiercely in his ear, your right hand moving to his hard and leaking cock, his warm hand clasping over yours firmly as you stroke together, matching the rhythm of your thrusts. His desperate cries of your name are swallowed as you cover his mouth with yours, completing a circuit that causes a jolting feeling of ecstasy to flood your body. The heat of his come bathing your fingers is all that it takes to have you shoot your spunk deep inside of him, his ass muscles gripping you in convulsive waves that leave your softening dick twitching, even as it slips out, slick and damp from your seed.

“Fucking hell, Jack!” Ennis’s voice is hoarse and broken and he starts to slide to the floor on boneless legs, but you hold him up as best you can, dragging him to the bed on your own none too steady feet. 

“That is but one of a lifetime of memorable fucks, friend.” You’re both sweating and panting, but you’ve never felt more alive and aware in your life. “No more playing by other people’s rules; we are in this for the long haul.” You pause and search his eyes looking for doubts or questions, but all you find is softly glowing amber, clear and cool…and the confidence that you will be together now… season after season after season.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My apologies for the extreme delay in posting these last two chapters. This story has been lost on an external hard drive I recently rediscovered. Thank you to anyone still following for your patience. I'll be reposting the rest of my BBM fics that were stored there over the next few weeks.


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